GIFT  or 


"S^     O^-^-^^J^- 


EPOCHS   IN  THE   LIFE  OF  JESUS 


EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE 
OF  JESUS 

A  STUDY  OF  DEVELOPMENT  AND 
STRUGGLE  IN  THE  MESSIAH'S  WORK 


BY 
A.  T.  ROBERTSON,  M.A.,  D.D., 

PROFESSOR    OF    NEW    TESTAMENT    INTERPRETATION    IN    THE    SOUTHERN 
BAPTIST    THEOLOGICAL    SEMINARY,    LOUISVILLE,    KT. 


"Sir,  we  would  see  Jesus." 

John  12  :  21. 


CHARLES    SCRIBNER'S    SONS 
NEW    YORK      ::::::     1907 


Copyright,  1907 
Bt  Charles  Scribner's  Sons 

Published  November,  1907 


? 


■:.:         ,,::.: 


•       I   !  .  *   •. 


K  q 


TO 
CHARLES  E.   TAYLOR 

SOMETIME   PRESIDENT   OF 
WAKE   FOREST   COLLEGE 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

Microsoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/epochsinlifeofjeOOroberich 


PREFACE 

I  make  no  apology  for  presenting  another  book  on 
Jesus.  The  theme  is  exhaustless.  Who  can  tell 
"the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ "?  Each  age 
has  to  interpret  Christ  for  itself.  Indeed,  each  man 
has  to  do  the  same  thing.  We  have  passed  through 
an  age  of  acute  criticism  of  the  sources.  The  re- 
sult, on  the  whole,  has  been  exceedingly  helpful. 
All  that  pertains  to  the  historical  aspects  of  Christ's 
career  has  been  sifted.  We  know  more  of  the  times 
and  the  thought  of  the  period.  The  background  of 
the  work  of  Christ  is  now  well  worked  out.  We  are 
entering  another  period  of  theological  controversy 
over  the  person  of  Christ.  It  is  still  the  dominant 
issue  in  the  thoughts  of  modern  men. 

This  little  book  attempts  a  straightforward  con- 
structive discussion  of  the  career  of  Jesus  as  set  forth 
in  the  Gospels.  There  is  no  technical  criticism  of 
the  sources,  though  the  writer  has  reached  his  own 
conclusions  on  many  points  which  come  out  inci- 
dentally. The  eight  chapters  were  delivered  as 
popular  lectures  at  a  summer  Chautauqua  at  Pertle 

vii 


viii  PREFACE 

Springs,  Mo.,  July,  1906,  to  an  audience  composed  of 
ministers  and  a  large  and  intelligent  body  of  other 
Christian  workers.  The  assembly  requested  the 
publication  of  the  lectures.  It  is  hoped  that  as  pub- 
lished they  may  be  useful  to  some  who  desire  a 
positive  presentation  of  the  career  of  Jesus  in  the 
light  of  modern  knowledge  and  in  full  sympathy 
with  the  position  given  to  Christ  in  the  Gospels. 

No  attempt  is  here  made  to  tell  the  story  of  the  life 
of  Jesus,  save  as  a  brief  summary  now  and  then  is 
necessary  to  the  interpretation  of  that  life.  The  at- 
tention is  rather  called  to  the  movement  and  climac- 
teric power  in  the  career  of  Christ.  The  historic 
forces  of  that  life  seem  narrow  from  one  point  of 
view,  but  the  current  runs  deep  and  swift.  The 
turning  points  in  the  life  of  Christ  are  brought  out 
sharply  with  less  accent  on  other  things,  so  that  one 
may  the  better  feel  the  titanic  struggle  that  Jesus 
had  with  ecclesiastical  tyranny  and  bigotry.  If  the 
reader  can  thus  "realize"  Jesus,  he  will  find  the 
Gospels  luminous  with  fresh  light.  The  lumber  of 
learning  is  all  left  out  here,  that  the  attention  of  the 
reader  may  be  focussed  on  Christ,  who  battled  for 
human  freedom  in  the  most  heroic  of  all  conflicts. 
He  won  the  freedom  of  the  human  spirit  at  the  great- 
est possible  cost.  The  Gentiles  can  now  indeed  see 
Jesus  without  throwing  any  preachers  into  a  panic. 


PREFACE  ix 

The  whole  world  can  now  see  Christ,  if  forsooth 
men  have  eyes  to  see.  "  In  the  midst  of  you  stand- 
eth  one  whom  ye  know  not"  (John  1  :  62). 

I  might  add  that  for  twenty  years  I  have  been 
teaching  theological  students  "the  things  of  Christ." 
I  give  no  bibliography,  but  my  obligations  to  the 
great  writers  on  the  Life  of  Christ  are  too  numerous 
to  mention.  I  cannot,  however,  forbear  acknowledg- 
ing my  debt  to  the  matchless  teaching  of  John  A. 
Broadus  in  this  institution.  But  the  Gospels  them- 
selves have  been  my  chief  inspiration  in  this  study. 

A.  T.  Robertson. 
Louisville,  Ky., 

September,  1907. 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAOB 

I.  The  Messianic  Consciousness  of  Jesus   .    .  1 

II.  The  First  Appeal  of  Jesus 26 

III.  The  New  Departure 51 

IV.  The  Galilean  Campaign 76 

V.  The  Special  Training  of  the  Twelve  ""  .    .  98 

VI.    The  Attack  Upon  Jerusalem 120 

VII.    The  Answer  of  Jerusalem 145 

VIII.    The  Final  Triumph  of  Jesus 169 

Index 191 


EPOCHS    IN    THE    LIFE 
OF    JESUS 

CHAPTER  I 

THE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS 

"This  is  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I  am  well 
pleased"  (Matt.  3:17). 

There  are  many  ways  of  approaching  the  life  of 
Jesus.  No  other  theme  has  produced  so  many 
books,  and  the  steady  stream  flows  on.  The 
knowledge  of  Jesus  is  indeed  the  most  excellent  of 
the  sciences.  And  yet  no  one  has  written  an  ex- 
haustive or  comprehensive  discussion  of  Christ.  It 
has  always  been  so.  No  one  of  the  Gospels  gives 
a  complete  picture  of  the  Master,  nor  do  all  four 
Gospels  tell  us  all  that  we  should  like  to  know,  nor, 
in  fact,  all  that  was  once  known  of  Jesus.  Herein 
lies  a  strong  argument  for  the  deity  of  Christ,  his 
inexhaustibleness.  "The  riches  of  Christ"  are 
"unsearchable"  and  past  finding  out. 

1.  The  Problem  of  Jesus. — He  is  a  constant  chal- 
1 


2  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

lenge  to  men,  to  the  greatest  of  men.  It  was  so  at 
the  first  and  is  true  to-day.  Men  have  grappled 
with  the  universe  under  the  spell  of  a  great  theory 
of  development.  Orderly  development  has  been 
found  in  the  various  spheres  of  human  knowledge. 
But  what  about  Jesus  of  Nazareth  ?  Is  he  the  prod- 
uct of  the  narrow  ceremonialism  and  ecclesiastical 
bigotry  of  Palestinian  Pharisaism?  No  connection 
can  be  traced  between  Christ  and  Plato,  Socrates, 
Buddha,  or  any  of  the  great  thinkers  outside  of 
Judaism.  Here  is  universal  and  absolute  truth  that 
sprang  out  of  an  atmosphere  of  intense  racial  pride 
and  hate.  Here  is  the  man  who  laid  most  stress 
on  the  spiritual  and  moral  aspects  of  religion  in  the 
midst  of  teachers  who  tithed  mint,  anise  and  cumin. 
But  this  is  not  all.  Here  is  one  who  led  a  sinless 
life  in  the  face  of  malignant  enemies,  whose  character 
is  the  unapproachable  ideal  of  all  men  who  have  ever 
read  his  story.  Here  is  one  who  made  the  greatest 
claims  for  himself,  who  put  himself  on  a  par  with  the 
living  God,  according  to  the  testimony  of  the  Gospels 
which  bring  us  the  story  of  his  career.  Here  is  one 
who  asserts  his  right  to  the  allegiance  of  all  men, 
who  offers  to  rescue  all  that  come  to  him  from  sin 
and  its  effects.  His  perfect  life  and  his  lofty  teach- 
ings give  a  serious  aspect  to  what  would  otherwise 
be  absurd  claims. 


THE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS    3 

The  tremendous  power  of  Jesus  over  the  world 
commands  respect,  whatever  the  explanation.  The 
men  who  are  most  loyal  to  Christ  are  just  the  men 
who  have  been  foremost  in  the  advancement  of 
civilization  and  the  uplift  of  the  race.  The  nations 
where  the  influence  of  Jesus  is  greatest  are  those 
whose  people  stand  highest  among  the  kingdoms  of 
earth.  The  Protestant  nations  which  have  freedom 
from  priestly  domination  have  long  led  the  world. 

Even  those  who  reject  the  claims  of  Jesus  to  deity 
on  philosophical  grounds,  like  Prof.  G.  B.  Foster 
(following  Pfleiderer),  or  on  critical  grounds  by  dis- 
posing of  the  evidence  for  his  career,  like  Prof.  N. 
Schmidt  (following  Bousset  and  Wrede),  are  rever- 
ent in  their  treatment  of  the  person  of  Jesus,  even 
enthusiastic  about  his  character. 

"What  think  ye  of  Christ ?"  He  was  indeed  set 
for  the  falling  and  the  rising  of  many  not  only  in 
Israel,  but  in  all  the  world.  He  is  the  loadstone  of 
human  hearts,  the  test  of  every  man's  life.  Like 
Charles  Lamb,  we  all  feel  that  if  Jesus  came  into 
our  presence  we  should  instinctively  kneel.  Jesus 
presses  himself  upon  our  hearts  and  upon  our  minds. 
He  does  not  expect  us  to  give  up  our  reason  when 
we  come  to  settle  the  question  with  him.  We  need 
then  all  the  intellect  that  we  have.  The  difficulty 
is  to  see  the  problem  as  a  whole  and  as  it  really  is. 


4  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

In  this  study  we  seize  the  main  things  in  their  histor- 
ical development  and  seek  to  grasp  their  relation  to 
each  other  and  their  results.  No  merely  natural  ex- 
planation of  Jesus  is  possible.  It  is  irrational,  in 
view  of  all  the  facts,  to  attempt  it.  A  "greater  than 
Jonah"  is  here,  the  Son  of  God.  Men  have  not  al- 
ways been  able  to  show  Jesus  to  those  who  asked  to 
see  him.  Philip  and  Andrew  were  puzzled  over  the 
simple  and  polite  request  of  the  Greeks.  Sometimes 
our  sermons  hide  Christ,  alas,  instead  of  revealing 
him.  Our  theology  may  become  a  veil  that  rests  on 
the  heart  so  that  Jesus  is  not  seen  when  the  Gospel 
is  read.  Our  wranglings  may  picture  an  absent 
Christ  and  reflect  the  ecclesiastical  ambitions  of  the 
first  disciples  instead  of  the  spiritual  elevation  of 
Jesus. 

The  search-light  of  modern  historical  investigation 
has  brought  out  into  clearer  relief  the  historic  Christ 
and  his  environment.  We  can  go  back  behind 
Calvin  and  Augustine  to  Christ.  We  can  even  go 
behind  Paul,  Peter  and  John  to  Christ  himself.  We 
can  see  how  each  of  the  Apostles  apprehended  Jesus, 
what  each  contributed  to  our  knowledge  of  the 
Master.  We  can  see  how  they  at  first  were  daz- 
zled by  the  great  Light  that  bewildered  them, 
how  gradually  they  came  to  understand  him  and 
his    message    and    their   mission.     The  revolution 


THE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS    5 

wrought  in  the  first  disciples  is  the  eternal  miracle  of 
Christianity  and  is  repeated  every  day  of  the  world. 
It  is  the  vision  of  the  Eternal  Christ.  We  can- 
not put  mere  historical  limitations  around  Jesus  in 
our  study  of  him.  While  we  follow  the  struggle, 
the  greatest  of  the  ages,  which  he  made  with  the 
human  and  superhuman  forces  about  him,  we  are 
conscious  of  a  higher  element  in  him.  He  himself 
spoke  of  this  transcendent  fact,  and  it  puzzled  and 
dazed  all  around  him.  His  life  did  not  begin  when 
he  was  born,  nor  did  it  end  when  he  died.  To-day 
the  world  bows  not  before  a  hero  of  hate  whose  body 
still  lies  on  Golgotha's  hill,  but  before  the  Risen 
Christ  who  sits  on  the  throne  of  majestic  glory  at 
the  right  hand  of  the  Father.  That  is  the  New 
Testament  picture  of  the  Redeemer  who  has  tri- 
umphed over  death  and  the  grave  and  who  is  lead- 
ing a  victorious  warfare  against  the  hosts  of  evil. 
This  is  the  Saviour  from  sin  who  has  spoken  peace 
to  our  hearts  and  in  whose  name  we  work  to-day. 
So,  while  we  study  together  the  human  conditions 
and  the  various  historic  epochs  in  the  career  of 
Christ,  let  us  not  think  that  such  an  attempt  can  ex- 
plain all  that  is  true  of  Jesus  then  and  now.  But  let 
our  hearts  burn  within  us  as  Jesus  comes  and  walks 
with  us  and  talks  with  us  as  we  seek  to  explain  some 
of  the  mystery  of  the  Nazarene. 


6  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

2.  The  First  Glimpse  0}  Jesus. — When  the  boy 
Jesus  comes  to  Jerusalem  at  twelve  years  of  age,  he 
knows  that  he  is  the  Son  of  God  in  a  sense  not  true 
of  other  men.  "Wist  ye  not  that  I  must  be  in  my 
Father's  house?"  His  parents  were  astonished  at 
the  ease  and  powers  he  showed  in  such  a  place  of 
dignity,  teaching  and  amazing  the  doctors  of  divinity 
in  the  rabbinical  theological  seminary.  But  none 
the  less  is  he  astonished  at  their  ignorance  of  the  fact 
that  this  is  the  place  of  all  the  world  for  him.  Who 
can  tell  a  boy's  golden  dreams  of  the  future  till  some 
day  the  sun  bursts  out  in  full  glory?  The  boy  has 
gone  forever  with  the  revelation  of  the  man,  and  the 
manly  purpose  has  come  to  fill  the  heart  and  life. 
The  word  "must"  throws  a  long  light  back  into  the 
boy's  quiet  years  at  Nazareth.  Modern  theologians 
speculate  learnedly  on  the  time  when  Jesus  first  be- 
came conscious  of  the  fact  that  he  was  God's  Son 
and  had  a  Messianic  mission  to  perform.  That  is 
idle  speculation.  •  We  only  know  that  at  twelve 
years  of  age  Jesus  is  aware  that  God  has  laid  his 
hand  upon  him.  He  is  at  home  in  the  Father's 
house  and  rejoices  to  discuss  high  and  holy  themes. 

The  whole  problem  of  the  person  of  Jesus  is 
brought  before  us  by  this  incident.  By  the  side  of 
this  early  Messianic  consciousness  lies  the  other 
fact  that  he  grew  in  wisdom  and  in  stature.     He  was 


THE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS    7 

a  real  boy  for  all  the  divine  element  in  him,  and  an 
obedient  one,  too,  for  he  was  subject  to  his  parents 
gladly  after  this  event.  #  The  one  boy  that  really 
knew  more  than  his  father  and  mother  was  a  model 
of  obedience. 

The  loneliness  of  the  boy  Jesus  at  this  time  im- 
presses one.  He  was  not  understood  by  the  theo- 
logical professors  at  Jerusalem,  nor  by  his  parents, 
not  even  by  his  mother  who  had  long  ago  been  told 
of  the  future  of  her  child.  Had  she  hid  her  secret 
so  deep  in  her  heart  that  it  was  well-nigh  lost? 
But  the  time  was  long  and  he  probably  did  little,  if 
aught,  out  of  the  ordinary,  certainly  none* of  the  silly 
things  told  by  the  apocryphal  gospels.  Only  once 
is  the  veil  lifted  during  the  silent  thirty  years,  and 
thus  light  shines  on  the  Messianic  consciousness  of 
Jesus.  He  had  a  human  education  those  years  at 
Nazareth,  in  his  home,  in  the  synagogue,  in  the 
fields  with  the  birds  and  flowers,  with  his  playmates, 
at  his  work  in  the  carpenter's  shop. 

Luke  is  the  writer  of  this  incident,  and  it  is  he 
whose  introduction  is  so  much  like  that  of  the  Greek 
historian  Thucydides.  Luke  it  is  who  said  that  he 
had  made  careful  examination  of  the  sources  and 
had  taken  pains  to  be  accurate.  The  stamp  of 
truthfulness  is  on  the  narrative  with  its  simplicity 
and  reality.     Mary  herself  may  well  have  told  Luke 


8  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

what  is  here  narrated.  It  is  the  fashion  to-day  with 
some  to  discount  what  John  has  to  say  about  Jesus, 
but  this  is  Luke  the  historian. 

•  A  word  is  needed  in  passing  concerning  the  nat- 
uralness and  reality  of  a  life  that  is  so  soon  conscious 
of  a  high  mission.  The  explanation  lies  in  the  appeal 
to  the  facts.  There  is  no  vestige  of  artificiality,  of 
playing  a  part,  in  the  career  of  Jesus.  We  drop  out 
of  sight  as  wilfully  blind  those  who  deny  that  Jesus 
ever  thought  that  he  was  the  Messiah,  who  even  say 
that  the  Old  Testament  does  not  predict  a  Messiah. 
This  surprising  result  is  obtained  either  by  rejecting 
the  passages  or  by  marvellous  exegesis  of  everything 
that  points  to  a  Messiah.  It  is  not  strange  that 
God's  Son  should  be  acquainted  with  his  Father. 
What  better  place  for  that  consciousness  to  come  to 
larger  and  more  vivid  activity  than  in  the  temple  of 
the  people  of  God,  dedicated  to  the  worship  of  God  ? 

This  boy  of  twelve  who  loved  the  birds  and  the 
flowers  and  worked  well  at  the  carpenter's  trade 
grew  in  favor  with  God  and  with  men.  And  no 
wonder.  He  combined  early  piety  with  popularity. 
When  Joseph  died  he  doubtless  became  in  a  sense 
the  mainstay  of  his  mother.  Did  ever  mother's 
heart  have  so  much  to  make  her  glad  ?  or  so  much 
that  she  did  not  understand  in  her  wonderful  boy? 

3.  Was  Jesus  Barn  of  a  Virgin  f — We  purposely 


THE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS    9 

passed  over  his  birth  till  now.  This  has  become  an 
acute  question  in  our  time.  The  scientific  temper 
demands  to  know  everything  and  sometimes  thinks 
it  has  succeeded;  but  this  feeling  of  omniscience 
is  not  monopolized  by  the  scientific  spirit.  The 
X-rays,  wireless  telegraphy,  radium,  and  radiobes,  to 
go  no  further,  make  it  difficult  to-day  for  the  real 
scientist  to  say  what  can  and  what  cannot  happen  in 
nature,  even  if  God  does  not  exist.  If  God  does  ex- 
ist, there  is  no  real  difficulty  from  God's  point  of 
view. 

Now  Matthew  and  Luke  both  give  the  story  of 
the  supernatural  birth  of  Jesus,  but  from  different 
points  of  view;  Luke  from  the  standpoint  of  Mary, 
Matthew  from  that  of  Joseph.  Evidently  there  are 
therefore  two  independent  accounts  of  this  great 
event,  both  of  which  come  from  sources  near  Jerus- 
alem, while  James  and  Jude,  brothers  of  Jesus,  still 
lived,  and  possibly  while  Mary,  the  Mother,  sur- 
vived. Luke  spent  two  years  in  Csesarea,  and  was 
a  careful  historian.  In  the  opening  chapters  of  his 
Gospel  which  tell  of  this  wondrous  event  there  are 
signs  that  he  used  an  Aramaic  or  Hebrew  document 
or  heard  the  story  from  one  who  spoke  Aramaic. 
The  very  first  thing  told,  after  his  careful  historical 
introduction,  is  the  birth  narrative.  There  are  mira- 
cles here  recorded,  not  necessarily  beautiful  legends 


10  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

to  idealize  or  deify  Jesus.  Legends  would  be  possible 
if  the  incarnation  of  Jesus  were  inherently  impossi- 
ble.    But  who  can  say  that  with  confidence? 

The  silence  of  Mark  cannot  be  turned  against 
Matthew  and  Luke.  This  Gospel  was  probably 
written  in  Rome  under  the  influence  of  Peter  and 
away  from  the  Jerusalem  circle.  It  is  not  surpris- 
ing that  nothing  should  be  said  at  first  in  public  con- 
cerning the  true  birth  of  Jesus.  He  passed  as  the 
son  of  Joseph  and  Mary.  The  new  Syriac  manu- 
script of  Matthew  from  Sinai  does  say  that  Joseph 
begat  Jesus  in  one  passage,  but  in  another  place  the 
old  reading  is  left.  The  text  was  probably  under 
Ebionitic  influence  which  denied  the  deity  of  Jesus. 

If  the  prologue  of  John,  with  its  wondrous  survey 
of  the  pre-incarnate  state  of  Jesus,  does  omit  a  dis- 
cussion of  the  birth  of  Jesus  and  so  has  nothing  con- 
cerning the  Virgin  Birth,  it  is  not  to  give  us  an  easier 
interpretation  of  the  origin  and  person  of  Christ. 
Certainly  John,  for  I  do  not  doubt  that  he  wrote  the 
Fourth  Gospel,  does  not  circumscribe  the  career 
nor  the  person  of  Jesus  within  purely  human  limits. 
The  earthly  career  of  Jesus  is  but  a  very  small  though 
momentous  portion  of  the  eternal  existence  of  the  Son 
of  God,  who  was  with  the  Father  in  heaven  before 
the  incarnation  and  who  has  returned  to  the  Father 
since  the  resurrection  and  ascension.     It  is  not  mere 


THE  iMESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS  11 

ideal  pre-existence  that  John  has  here  in  mind,  but 
personal  presence  with  the  Father.  John  goes  fur- 
ther still.  He  says  pointedly  of  the  Logos:  He  was 
God.  That  is  a  conception  capable  of  comprehen- 
sion, that  the  Father  should  have  a  Son,  a  necessary 
corollary  of  Father  in  fact.  But  John  even  says 
that  this  Son  or  Logos  became  flesh  and  dwelt 
among  us.  The  Son  of  God,  who  was  God  and  co- 
existed with  the  Father,  became  flesh.  How?  I 
venture  to  ask.  Was  it  a  mere  theophany?  Was 
Jesus  a  real  man  ?  Were  the  Docetic  Gnostics  right 
after  all  who  held  that  Jesus  only  seemed  to  be  a 
man  ?  The  proper  interpretation  of  John's  language 
is  found  in  the  Virgin  Birth,  and  only  thus.  He 
assumes  it  as  well  known  and  implies  it.  If  he  were 
in  truth  the  son  of  Joseph,  he  would  not  be  "  God 
only  begotten"  (true  text). 

The  difficulty  is  just  as  great  if  we  turn  to  Paul. 
He  does  say  that  Jesus  was  born  of  woman,  and 
thus  disposes  of  Docetic  Gnosticism.  He  was  a 
real  man  according  to  Paul.  But  did  Paul  hold  him 
to  be  God  as  John  clearly  believed?  He  does  not 
use  the  term  God  of  Jesus  unless  we  so  punctuate 
Rom.  9  : 5,  and  read  church  of  God  (correct  text) 
in  Acts  20  :  28.  But  in  Col.  1  :  15-18  and  elsewhere 
(as  in  II.  Cor.  8  : 9  and  Phil.  2  : 6.)  Paul  so  de- 
scribes Jesus  that  he  can  be  to  him  nothing  else  but 


12  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

God.  Paul  may  or  may  not  have  faced  the  question 
of  the  Virgin  Birth  of  Jesus.  But  the  real  deity  of 
Jesus  is  taught  by  Paul,  and  that  is  the  crux  of  the 
whole  matter.  He  has  nothing  inconsistent  there- 
with, nor  has  John.  All  the  positive  testimony  of 
the  New  Testament  is  in  favor  of  this  explanation, 
and  there  is  not  a  word  against  it.  Indeed,  the 
theological  conceptions  of  Paul  and  John  demand 
it.  Professor  Briggs  (in  North  American  Review 
for  June,  1906)  boldly  claims  that  to  give  up  the 
Virgin  Birth  is  to  give  up  the  philosophical  basis  for 
the  incarnation  of  Christ.  One  may  still  believe  in 
the  deity  of  Jesus  and  be  illogical.  That  does  not 
disturb  a  good  many  people.  Logic  cuts  a  small 
figure  in  a  good  deal  of  theology.  But  it  is  not  pos- 
sible to  think  of  God  becoming  man  except  by  the 
Virgin  Birth  and  not  thereby  have  two  persons  in 
the  one  into  whom  God  has  entered.  The  heresy 
of  Nestorianism  or  two  persons  in  Christ  is  then 
inevitable.  And  even  if  God  could  thus  enter  such 
a  man,  he  would  not  thereby  affect  any  other  man. 
If  Jesus  is  indeed  the  God-Man,  Son  of  God  and 
Son  of  Man,  the  Virgin  Birth  is  the  only  conceivable 
way  for  that  great  event  to  happen.  And,  indeed, 
this  problem  is  no  more  difficult  than  anything  else 
connected  with  the  deity  of  Jesus.  That  is  the 
problem  after  all.     The  ancient  deification  of  the 


THE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS  13 

Roman  emperor  and  other  heroes  and  demi-gods 
does  not  prove  that  this  is  what  happened  with 
Jesus. 

So  let  us  take  our  place  with  the  shepherds  on  the 
hills  of  Bethlehem  and  hear  the  angels  sing  about 
peace  on  earth  to  men  who  receive  the  good  pleasure 
of  God.  Let  us  fall  under  the  spell  of  this  transcend- 
ent mystery.  The  Child  in  the  Manger  has  brought 
new  hope  to  every  mother  in  the  world,  new  glory  to 
every  child  on  earth,  new  dignity  for  every  man  who 
has  felt  the  touch  of  the  Son  of  God.  He  will  in- 
deed save  his  people  from  their  sins.  Zacharias  and 
Mary,  Simeon  and  Anna  caught  a  glimpse  of  the 
Light  that  brightens  Jew  and  Gentile.  They  sang 
the  first  Christian  hymns.  They  had  seen  the  sal- 
vation of  Israel.  The  wise  men  still  fall  at  his  feet, 
and  the  Herods  and  Satan  are  still  trying  to  com- 
pass the  ruin  of  the  Christ.  But  not  priest,  nor  king, 
nor  devil  can  stay  the  march  of  the  Kingdom  of 
God. 

Who  is  Jesus  then?  No  doctrine  that  we  can 
frame  meets  all  the  facts.  The  Kenosis  theories  of 
the  humiliation  of  Christ  put  into  Paul's  word  in 
Phil.  2  : 9  more  than  he  had.  They  multiply,  not 
minimize,  the  problems.  They  fade  away  into  dim- 
ness and  vagueness.  Of  what  did  Christ  empty  him- 
self when  he  left  the  place  beside  the  Father  on  high  ? 


14  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

Did  it  apply  to  his  divine  nature  or  only  to  his  di- 
vine glory?  How  much  of  God's  knowledge  and 
God's  power  did  Christ  have  while  he  was  man  ? 
How  could  the  infinite  Son  of  God  tie  himself  up  in 
human  flesh  with  human  limitations?  How  could 
the  sinless  one  dwell  in  flesh  and  not  have  sin  ?  If 
he  had  sin,  he  could  not  save  us  from  sin.  If  the 
true  theologian  is  humble  and  reverent  here,  it  must 
be  recalled  that  the  true  scientist  is  not  boastful  about 
life,  ultimate  life,  the  Source  of  all  things.  We  do  not 
understand  either  half  of  this  problem,  God  or  man. 
It  is  not  strange  that  the  combination  causes  new 
difficulties.  Perhaps  when  we  do  reach  clearness  of 
vision  about  both  God  and  man,  we  shall  approach 
the  subject  of  the  God-Man  with  more  confidence. 
At  any  rate,  we  are  sure  that  this  sublime  union  of 
(rod  and  man  does  offer  the  only  real  solution  of 
the  career  and  character  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  It 
is  in  personality  that  God  and  man  can  properly 
meet.  Philosophy  can  help  a  little  way  here  by  the 
new  emphasis  on  the  problems  of  personality.  We 
can  in  Christ  form  an  intelligible  conception  of  God. 
Without  Christ  our  ideas  of  God  tend  to  fade  away 
into  abstractions. 

4.  The  Father's  Sanction  of  the  Son. — The  news 
came  to  Jesus  in  Nazareth  that  strange  things  were 
going  on  down  by  Jordan  river.     He  was  a  man 


HIE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS  15 

now,  the  man  Jesus,  and  the  news  had  a  fascination 
for  him.  It  was  not  the  call  of  the  wilderness,  but 
the  call  of  his  Father  that  he  heard,  though  he  must 
go  to  the  desert.  A  new  prophet  had  appeared  in 
the  wilderness,  a  man  with  odd  garments,  queer 
habits,  and  a  marvellous  message.  But  the  charm 
of  John  was  not  in  his  garb  nor  in  his  diet.  Great- 
ness cannot  be  counterfeited  by  imitating  eccen- 
tricities. It  was  the  spirit  and  power  of  Elijah,  not 
the  hairy  raiment  of  Elijah,  that  most  characterized 
the  Baptist.  The  message  was  the  most  wonderful 
thing  about  the  man.  He  said  that  the  Kingdom 
was  at  hand,  no  longer  in  the  distant  future.  Was 
it  true?  The  news  spread  till  all  Jerusalem  and 
Judea  went  out  to  see  what  was  more  than  a  reed 
shaken  in  the  wind.  Finally  the  preachers  and 
teachers  went  also  with  the  crowd  to  hear  this  moun- 
tain prophet,  some  perhaps  to  scoff  and  sneer.  It 
was  amazing,  the  audacity  of  the  man!  He  said 
that  even  the  preachers  must  repent  like  common 
sinners,  publicans  and  Gentiles,  and  be  baptized. 
As  if  we  were  not  the  children  of  Abraham!  But 
this  prophet  spared  not  high  nor  low,  soldier,  pub- 
lican, nor  priest.  Those  that  repented  he  immersed 
in  the  Jordan,  and  the  new  rite  made  many  suppose 
that  he  was  the  Messiah  himself.  For  a  little  while 
then  John  was  taken  at  more  than  his  real  value 


16  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

(as  reformers  often  are),  but  he  soon  dispelled  such 
false  estimates  by  bluntly  saying  that  he  was  not  the 
Messiah.  He  was  only  the  Voice  of  the  Herald 
crying  in  the  wilderness.  He  was  not  worthy  to  un- 
loose the  shoes  of  the  Messiah,  who  would  have  the 
baptism  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  But  where  was  the 
Messiah  ? 

Did  Jesus  tell  his  mother  where  he  was  going  when 
he  left  Nazareth  ?  His  crisis  had  come  and  he  knew 
it.  John  and  Jesus  met  by  the  water  side.  John 
had  had  a  sign  given  him  by  which  to  recognize  the 
Messiah.  Doubtless  he  had  each  day  watched  for 
that  sign  as  he  baptized  the  multitudes  and  eagerly 
scanned  each  upturned  face.  He  probably  had  not 
seen  Jesus,  certainly  not  for  a  long  time,  and  he  did 
not  know  who  the  Messiah  was.  But  before  the 
sign  came  he  had  an  instinctive  feeling  that  here 
was  he!  It  was  incongruous  that  the  Messiah 
should  ask  baptism  at  his  hands.  John  had  not,  it 
seems,  been  himself  baptized.  His  baptism  called 
for  confession  of  sin,  and  in  the  presence  of  the  sin- 
less One,  John  felt  afresh  his  own  unworthiness  and 
asked  baptism  at  the  hands  of  Jesus.  But  Jesus  held 
his  ground.  It  was  right  enough  for  John  to  feel  that 
way,  but  Jesus  was  a  man  and  a  Jew  and  must  obey 
the  call  that  his  Father  made  on  all  to  be  baptized 
on  confession  of  sin.     The  fact  that  he  had  no  sin  to 


THE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS  17 

confess  did  not  relieve  him  from  the  obligation  to  do 
this  righteous  act  of  obedience.  Let  us  never  for- 
get that  Jesus  thought  it  worth  while  to  come  from 
Nazareth  to  the  Jordan,  not  to  be  saved,  for  he  needed 
no  saving,  and  baptism  saves  no  one  except  symbol- 
ically. He  gave  the  sanction  of  his  own  example  to 
baptism  in  the  Jordan,  and  later  he  enjoined  it 
upon  all  his  disciples.  He  was  indeed  in  a  symbolic 
way  setting  forth  his  own  death  and  resurrection 
also,  but  John  in  all  likelihood  did  not  see  that 
point. 

John  soon  saw  that  Jesus  was  right  in  being  bap- 
tized, for  the  Father  spoke  audibly  to  the  Son,  and 
the  Spirit  of  God  in  the  form  of  a  dove  rested  on 
Jesus  as  he  came  out  of  the  water  praying.  It  was 
an  august  moment.  Father,  Son,  and  Spirit  join 
in  celebrating  this  event.  Clearly  the  baptism  of 
Jesus  had  a  wonderful  personal  significance.  It  has 
been  variously  interpreted.  Some  imagine  that  now 
for  the  first  time  Jesus  became  aware  of  the  fact 
that  he  was  the  Messiah,  the  Son  of  God,  but  that 
interpretation  is  not  justified  by  the  facts.  His  pro- 
test to  John  just  before  the  baptism  was  no  disclaimer 
of  the  Messiahship.  His  whole  bearing  with  John 
was  that  of  one  who  had  faced  his  destiny  and  had 
settled  it.  Some  of  the  Corinthian  Gnostics  imag- 
ined that  the  Christ  as  an  Aeon  or  Emanation  of 


18  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

God  came  down  on  Jesus  at  his  baptism  like  a  dove, 
and  that  it  was  this  Aeon  Christ  that  was  divine, 
while  Jesus  was  himself  a  mere  man.  His  baptism 
was,  however,  the  beginning  of  the  public  Messianic 
work.  Jesus  was  now  stepping  out  into  the  open. 
He  had  crossed  the  Rubicon  and  there  was  no  turn- 
ing back.  He  had  put  his  hand  to  this  plow  and  he 
must  follow  it  to  the  end  and  sink  the  plow  in  deep. 
It  was  the  coming  of  the  Holy  Spirit  that  constituted 
the  anointing  of  Jesus,  and  not  the  baptism.  Let  us 
not  confuse  the  two  things.  We  may  compare  the 
prophetic  endowment  in  the  Old  Testament. 

5.  The  Moral  Issue  in  the  Temptation. — The  Gos- 
pel writers  can  only  have  gotten  this  narrative  from 
Jesus  himself.  He  probably  told  the  disciples  long 
afterwards  about  this  fierce  struggle  with  the  prince 
of  evil  that  met  him  at  the  threshold  of  his  ministry, 
as  it  often  comes  just  then  to  the  young  preacher. 
Mark  barely  mentions  the  fact,  while  Matthew  and 
Luke  tell  the  details  of  the  Titanic  struggle.  The 
time  of  the  occurrence  could  only  be  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  ministry.  Satan  would  wish  at  once  to 
challenge  the  Messiah.  Like  a  lion  of  the  jungle 
he  challenges  the  newcomer  into  his  domain.  Right- 
ly or  wrongly  the  devil  claimed  this  world  as  his 
own.  He  had  done  much  to  make  it  a  jungle  of  sin 
and  woe.     He  felt  that  there  could  only  be  enmity 


THE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS  19 

between  himself  and  Jesus.  The  Synoptic  Gospels 
all  agree  in  putting  the  temptation  just  after  the 
baptism.  It  was  the  psychological  moment.  Every 
new  convert  has  a  fresh  struggle  with  the  devil 
after  his  baptism.  "  Now,  you  have  gone  and  made 
a  fool  of  yourself,"  the  devil  will  say. 

We  may  not  pause  to  discuss  whether  it  was  an 
objective  visitation  of  the  devil  or  merely  the  pressure 
of  devilish  suggestion  on  the  mind  of  Jesus.  Most 
probably  both  elements  existed.  It  is  no  more 
difficult  to  think  of  the  devil  making  a  visible  mani- 
festation of  himself  to  Jesus  than  to  believe  in  the 
existence  of  the  devil  at  all.  That  is  the  real  prob- 
lem. If  there  is  a  real  spirit  of  evil  who  has  access 
to  and  power  over  the  soul  of  man,  we  need  trouble 
ourselves  little  about  the  rest.  It  would  be  com- 
forting to  believe,  as  some  writers  do,  that  the  devil 
is  dead.  Certainly  sin  is  not  dead.  If  there  is  no 
devil,  it  is  not  complimentary  to  man  to  make  him 
originally  responsible  for  all  the  evil  in  the  world. 
But,  whether  the  devil  appeared  objectively  to  Christ 
or  not,  it  was  in  the  realm  of  spirit  that  the  tempta- 
tion took  place.  Mark  even  says  that  Jesus  was 
led  of  the  Spirit  into  the  wilderness  to  be  tempted 
of  the  devil.  This  is  at  first  a  hard  saying,  but  prob- 
ably it  only  means  that  God  wished  his  Son  to  meet 
the  tempter  at  once  and  have  it  out  once  for  all.    Not 


20  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

that  the  devil  would  not  try  again,  but  the  line  for 
future  conflict  would  be  clearly  defined. 

The  devil  has  an  evident  allusion  to  the  approval 
of  the  Father  at  Christ's  baptism  when  he  said  "if 
thou  art  a  son  of  God,"  as  God  had  said.  Not 
that  the  devil  denies  that  this  is  so;  in  fact,  the  form 
of  the  condition  implies  that  it  is  true,  and  he  says 
"  a  son  of  God,"  not  "  the  Son  of  God,"  as  God  had 
said.  But  he  suggests  to  Jesus  that  it  would  be  just 
as  well  for  him  to  test  what  God  had  said.  That 
would  do  no  harm.  He  would  then  have  personal 
experience  to  sustain  him.  He  was  very  hungry 
and,  if  he  was  God's  Son,  surely  he  could  do  cre- 
ative work  as  God  did.  It  was  a  subtle  appeal. 
Jesus  would  work  miracles  for  others.  Why  not 
begin  by  working  one  for  himself  ?  In  a  word,  shall 
Jesus  be  a  selfish  Messiah?  But  the  temptation 
would  have  been  no  temptation  put  in  that  form. 
That  is  the  peril  with  a  temptation,  that  its  real 
character  is  at  first  concealed  and  difficult  to  see. 
There  was  here  concealed  distrust  of  God. 

The  Jews  expected  the  Messiah  to  come  with  a 
great  spectacular  display.  They  will  often  ask 
Jesus  to  do  a  sign,  not  merely  work  miracles,  but 
some  great  portent  in  the  heavens,  for  instance.  The 
devil  suggests  that  Jesus  accommodate  himself  to 
the  popular  expectation  and  let  them  see  him  come 


THE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS  21 

sailing  down  from  the  pinnacle  of  the  temple,  right 
out  of  heaven.  They  would  hail  him  with  acclaim. 
But  Jesus  was  to  be  no  mere  performer  of  tricks,  no 
balloon  or  parachute  aeronaut.  The  devil  grows 
pious  and  quotes  Scripture,  not  misquotes  it  as  some 
good  people  do,  but  he  misapplies  it.  In  that  also 
the  devil  has  no  monopoly.  But  Jesus  saw  that  he 
would  be  presumptuous  and  not  trustful  if  he  dared 
such  a  feat.  Besides,  he  might  as  well  settle  now 
as  later  whether  he  was  to  be  the  kind  of  a  Messiah 
that  the  people  wished  or  the  one  that  the  Father  had 
planned.  Every  preacher  in  a  humbler  way  has  to 
meet  a  similar  problem.  It  is  so  easy  to  fall  in  with 
the  drift  of  things,  so  easy  as  to  fall  over  a  great 
height  when  nervous  and  afraid. 

But  the  devil  was  not  done.  He  appealed  to  the 
ambition  of  Jesus.  He  would  help  him  to  be  king  of 
the  world.  The  devil  was  an  old  hand  at  it.  He 
would  not  exactly  abdicate;  he  and  Jesus  could  run 
it  together.  That  would  be  better  than  open  war. 
He  offered  Jesus  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  world  and 
the  glory  of  them.  It  was  a  fascinating  picture  as 
it  passed  before  the  mind  of  Jesus.  He  only  asked 
in  return  that  Jesus  bow  down  before  him  up  here 
on  the  mountain.  Nobody  else  was  there,  and  it 
would  merely  be  a  recognition  of  the  facts  of  the  case. 
The  devil  did  have  the  kingdoms  of  the  world  in  his 


22  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

power,  the  great  Roman  Empire,  for  instance. 
Was  it  not  better  to  make  peace  and  be  friends  than 
to  fight  it  out?  He  could  turn  this  great  Roman 
Empire  against  Jesus,  who  had  no  disciples  as  yet, 
and,  if  he  should  win  some,  he  could  use  this  em- 
pire against  the  Kingdom  of  Jesus.  This  was  the 
heart  of  the  temptation.  Jesus  wanted  the  world. 
In  fact,  he  had  come  to  win  the  world,  but  he  was 
to  win  the  world  from  the  devil,  not  take  the  world 
on  the  devil's  terms  and  with  the  devil  as  dictator. 
Christ  was  not  confused  by  the  issue.  He  knew 
what  his  decision  meant.  But  he  loved  the  world 
too  well  to  betray  it  in  that  fashion.  He  would  not 
have  a  mixture  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven  and  the 
kingdom  of  the  world.  He  would  die  for  the  world. 
Strange  to  say,  the  devil  did  fight  Jesus  with  the 
Roman  Empire  and  did  graft  much  of  the  world  on 
the  church  of  the  Middle  Ages.  But  Jesus  brushed 
aside  all  compromise  and  surrender  and  ordered 
Satan  to  go  hence.  He  did  go,  cowed  for  the  mo- 
ment, but  he  will  bide  his  time  and  wait  for  another 
chance.  Death  then  faces  Jesus  at  the  very  begin- 
ning. He  must  be  willing  to  die  for  men  before  he 
can  save  men.  So  Jesus  chose  the  high  and  stony 
path  that  led  to  Calvary,  a  lonely  way  and  a  weary 
one.  His  decision  meant  eternal  conflict  with  Satan 
till  he  has  conquered  and  the  kingdoms  of  this  world 


THE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS  23 

have  become  the  kingdom  of  our  Lord  and  of  his 
Christ. 

6.  The  Johannine  Presentation  of  Jesus. — It  har- 
monizes with  the  synoptic  picture  as  seen  in  the 
temptation,  for  instance.  In  John,  Jesus  is  repre- 
sented as  conscious  from  the  very  start  that  he  is 
the  Messiah  charged  with  a  mighty  work  for  God, 
conscious  also  of  his  death  for  men.  The  point  to 
note  is  that  this  conception  of  Christ  is  given  also 
in  the  Synoptic  Gospels.  John  has  merely  accented 
what  is  implicit  in  the  temptation  and  expressed  by 
the  Father  at  the  baptism.  Jesus  is  the  Son  of 
God.  John  represents  Christ  as  addressed  as  Mes- 
siah and  even  claiming  to  be  Messiah  at  the  first. 
That  is  not  strange,  but  natural.  Just  as  John  tells 
of  the  early  baptizing  done  by  the  disciples  of  Jesus, 
which  apparently  ceased  because  of  the  popularity 
of  Jesus  with  the  people  and  consequent  hostility 
of  the  Pharisees,  so  he  narrates  the  early  Messianic 
claims  which  were  soon  stopped  in  terms  and  for 
the  same  reason.  The  collision  with  the  rulers  at 
Jerusalem  at  the  very  first  passover  made  it  plain 
that  matters  would  come  to  a  focus  at  once  if  Jesus 
persisted  in  openly  claiming  to  be  the  Messiah  or  in 
allowing  himself  to  be  so  called.  The  Messianic  re- 
straint of  Jesus,  therefore,  became  a  necessity.  But 
this  restraint  does  not  at  all  mean  that  Jesus  began 


24  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

his  public  career  merely  as  another  rabbi  or  even  a 
prophet  like  John  looking  for  the  Messiah,  finally 
drawn  by  popular  expectation  to  think  he  was  the 
Messiah  or  to  pose  as  the  Messiah.  Those  alterna- 
tives are  alike  inconceivable  and  inconsistent  with 
all  that  we  know  of  Jesus.  He  was  no  mere  dreamer, 
no  fanatic,  no  play-actor,  no  demagogue,  no  char- 
latan. There  are  difficulties  in  thinking  of  Jesus 
as  knowing  at  the  beginning  of  his  ministry  that  he 
was  the  Messiah  and  would  be  put  to  death,  but  that 
fate  is  before  every  true  soldier.  Jesus  goes  on 
bravely  to  meet  his  hour  and  live  out  his  day.  Ac- 
tual experience  shows  that  the  highest  type  of  man- 
hood is  developed  in  a  time  of  stress  and  storm. 

7.  The  Terms  Used  of  Jesus  Have  a  Peculiar  In- 
terest.— His  own  favorite  word,  Son  of  Man,  had  a 
Messianic  import,  though  not  generally  so  under- 
stood at  the  time.  It  served  as  a  claim  for  his  office, 
and  yet  in  a  veiled  form.  It  was  certainly  more  than 
the  jejune  Aramaic  "barnasha,"  a  man.  In  some 
passages  that  idea  is  positively  ridiculous.  Be- 
sides, the  term  accents  the  incarnation  of  Christ. 
He  is  the  representative  man.  A  few  times  Jesus 
called  himself  the  Son  of  God  .(Synoptic  as  well  as 
Johannine)  in  a  sense  not  true  of  other  men.  This 
claim  the  Jews  regarded  as  blasphemy,  for  he 
claimed  to  be  equal  with  God  and  received  worship 


THE  MESSIANIC  CONSCIOUSNESS  OF  JESUS  25 

as  God.  After  the  opening  ministry  he  did  not  al- 
low himself  to  be  called  Messiah  in  so  many  words 
till  he  pointedly  asked  Peter  to  say  what  he  thought 
of  him.  Even  then  he  warned  Peter  and  the  dis- 
ciples not  to  call  him  Messiah  in  public.  And  yet 
on  oath  before  the  Sanhedrin,  Jesus  did  say  that  he 
was  the  Messiah,  the  Son  of  God,  and  the  Son  of 
Man.  He  paid  the  penalty  of  that  confession  by 
death.  It  would  not  be  blasphemy  for  the  real 
Messiah  to  make  this  claim.  And  Jesus  had  been 
identified  by  John  the  Baptist  as  the  Lamb  of  God 
that  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world.  The  last 
time  that  the  Baptist  saw  the  Messiah  he  stood  look- 
ing, rapt  with  the  glory  of  the  vision.  "He  stand- 
eth  in  the  midst  of  you,"  he  had  said,  "  and  ye  know 
him  not."  And  that  is  often  true  to-day  of  the  un- 
seen and  unrecognized  Christ. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS 
"Come,  and  ye  shall  see"  (John  1:39). 

We  are  told  in  Heb.  5:  8  that,  though  Jesus  was  a 
son,  yet  he  learned  obedience  by  what  he  suffered. 
He  had  to  be  made  perfect  by  the  discipline  of  ex- 
perience (Heb.  2: 10).  Thus  alone  he  could  be- 
come the  Captain  (or  Author)  of  salvation,  and  thus 
he  could  gain  power  to  help  the  tempted  (Heb. 
2:  18).  Experience  does  not  come  as  a  gift  or  an 
inheritance,  nor  can  it  be  bought.  Already  Jesus 
has  settled  accounts  with  the  great  tempter  as  to 
the  character  of  his  work.  The  long  war  for  the 
rescue  of  the  world  has  begun,  for  Jesus  came  to 
bring  not  peace,  but  a  sword. 

1.  Connection  with  John  the  Baptist's  Work. — 
Christ  was  not  wholly  alone  in  his  work  for  the 
Kingdom  of  God.  A  few  spirits  like  Simeon  and 
Anna,  Zacharias  and  Elizabeth,  of  a  former  genera- 
tion, lingered  on,  waiting  for  the  consolation  of  i 
Israel,  though  as  a  whole  the  "seed-plot  of  Chris- 
tianity" in  Sanday's  words  was  in  uncongenial  soil. 

26 


THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS      27 

But  John  the  Baptist,  as  the  Forerunner  of  the 
Messiah,  had  brought  to  the  surface  some  choice 
spirits  who  would  hail  the  Messiah  with  joy. 

John  the  Baptist  never  wavered  for  a  moment 
about  the  Messiah.  He  could  take  his  own  measure 
perfectly,  a  very  difficult  thing  to  do.  We  make 
mental  misfits  very  easily.  He  did  not  allow  flattery 
or  intrigue  to  turn  him  from  hearty  loyalty  to  Jesus 
as  the  true  Messiah,  the  Hope  of  Israel.  The  Gos- 
pel of  John  does  not  narrate  the  baptism  of  Jesus 
by  the  Baptist,  though  it  implies  it  in  alluding  to  the 
sign  of  the  Holy  Spirit  descending  on  him  (1 :  33). 
After  the  baptism  of  Jesus,  John  only  saw  him 
twice,  so  far  as  we  know,  and  that  on  two  successive 
days.  But  on  each  occasion  his  soul  was  rapt  with 
the  vision.  There  is  the  Lamb  of  God!  Naught 
else  was  worth  seeing  while  Jesus  was  to  be  seen. 
" He  looked  upon  Jesus  as  he  walked"  (John  1 :  36). 
He  rejoiced  to  bear  his  testimony  of  identification. 
"I  have  seen,  and  I  have  borne  witness  that  this  is 
the  Son  of  God"  (John  1:  34).  He  saw  truly  also 
the  sacrificial  aspect  of  the  Messiah's  work.  He  is 
"the  Lamb  of  God  that  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the 
world"  (John  1:29).  The  Baptist  did  not,  as 
some  maintain,  wholly  mistake  the  work  of  the  Mes- 
siah, for  he  expressly  said  that  Jesus  would  perform 
a  spiritual  ministry  (baptize  with  the  Spirit),  though 


28  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

his  coming  did  bring  inevitable  judgment  upon  the 
world. 

2.  The  First  Disciples. — These  were  disciples 
of  the  Baptist,  Andrew  and  probably  John  the 
Evangelist,  who  took  the  Baptist  at  his  word  and 
went  with  Jesus.  It  was  a  moment  of  great  sig- 
nificance for  Jesus.  Here  at  least  was  a  beginning, 
two  souls  prepared  by  the  Baptist's  work.  John 
the  Evangelist  wrote  of  it  when  an  old  man,  but  he 
never  forgot  across  the  years  the  event  nor  the  hour 
of  the  day,  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning  (Roman 
time).  They  spent  the  day  with  Jesus,  the  first  of 
many  like  days.  The  leaven  of  the  Kingdom  was 
already  at  work.  To  Andrew  belongs  the  distinc- 
tion of  moving  first  to  win  another.  The  correct 
text  (John  1:  41)  indeed  says  that  this  is  the  first 
thing  that  Andrew  did  after  his  communion  with 
Jesus.  He  put  first  things  first.  He  had  no  time 
for  aught  else.  To  Simon,  his  brother,  he  says 
simply:  "We  have  found  the  Messiah."  It  was  a 
piece  of  tremendous  news.  Could  it  be  true  ?  Simon 
is  soon  face  to  face  with  Jesus.  At  once  the  eye  of 
Jesus  was  taken  with  the  man.  He  "looked  upon 
him"  with  all  the  penetration  of  human  nature  so 
characteristic  of  Christ.  He  saw  in  Simon  what 
nobody  else  had  ever  seen — saw  indeed  the  insta- 
bility, the  impulsiveness,  the  weakness  of  his  nat- 


THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS  29 

ure,  but  saw  beyond  all  that  the  deeper  and 
stronger  possibilities  of  this  man  and  appealed,  as 
he  always  does,  to  the  best  in  him.  He  prophesied 
a  new  name  for  Simon,  that  of  Cephas  or  Peter. 
He  did  not  now  deserve  to  be  called  a  Rock,  but  he 
will.  What  Jesus  did  with  Simon  he  does  with  every 
man.  The  most  remarkable  thing  about  Jesus  is 
what  he  puts  into  a  man,  not  what  he  sees  in  him. 
Thus  Christ  has  lifted  up  the  world,  by  finding  the 
best  thing  in  a  man,  developing  that,  and  putting 
new  life  into  him,  the  Kingdom  of  God. 

On  the  next  day  Jesus  finds  Philip  and  pointedly 
says:  " Follow  me."  It  was  a  strange  command. 
Philip  did  not  know  Jesus.  Why  should  he  follow 
this  stranger?  He  may  have  been  a  disciple  of  the 
Baptist,  but  at  any  rate  Philip  came  from  Beth- 
saida,  the  town  of  Andrew  and  Peter,  who  were  now 
with  Jesus.  This  fact  gave  weight  to  the  demand 
of  Jesus.  So  it  is  to-day.  We  follow  Christ  partly 
because  our  friends  do.  Besides,  there  was  a  tone 
of  insistence  in  the  words  of  Jesus.  He  seemed  to 
have  the  right  to  ask  this  supreme  service  of  Philip. 
Men  will  listen  to  the  plea  of  Jesus,  it  is  now  clear. 
It  will  be  possible  to  win  men  to  the  Kingdom  of 
Christ  in  opposition  to  the  kingdom  of  the  devil. 

As  Andrew  (and  probably  also  John  the  Evangel- 
ist) was  stirred  by  the  power  of  the  leaven,  so  Philip 


30  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

is  stirred  to  find  Nathanael.  Each  one  wins  one. 
Why  not?  That  is  the  normal  work  of  the  King- 
dom of  God.  "We  have  found  him,"  Philip  says. 
EvprfKafxev.  It  was  the  greatest  of  earth's  discov- 
eries. Not  gold,  nor  diamond,  nor  planet,  nor  new 
sun,  nor  radium  can  be  mentioned  beside  this  dis- 
covery of  whom  Moses  and  the  prophets  did  write. 
But  Nathanael  was  not  impulsive  like  Simon.  He 
was  a  sceptic.  "Can  any  good  thing  come  out  of 
Nazareth?"  (John  1  :  43).  Like  many  other  scep- 
tics, he  settled  the  whole  matter  on  a  side  issue. 
Philip  had  called  him  "Jesus  of  Nazareth,  the  Son 
of  Joseph."  Nathanael  lived  not  far  from  Nazar- 
eth. To  be  a  citizen  of  that  town  was  enough  for 
him.  Nazareth  had  a  bad  name,  and  was  the 
wrong  place  anyhow  according  to  the  Old  Testa- 
ment ;  therefore  the  Messiah  could  not  live  there. 
Logic  is  after  all  a  poor  coach  to  ride  in.  One 
has  said  that  the  best  thing  in  the  world  came  out 
of  Nazareth.  But  Philip  was  patient.  He  only 
asked  a  trial.  "Come  and  see."  The  claims  of 
Jesus  are  not  to  be  settled  finally  in  the  realm  of 
abstract  discussion.  The  argument  from  experience 
is  a  scientific  argument.  Philip  rested  his  whole  case 
right  there.  He  knew  what  Jesus  had  done  for  him. 
Nathanael  could  not  refuse  to  come.  So  he  came  to 
investigate  Jesus,  but  found  that  Jesus  had  already 


THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS  31 

diagnosed  him  and  pronounced  him  "an  Israelite 
indeed  in  whom  there  is  no  guile."  Thus  it  is 
a  personal  issue  between  Nathanael  and  Jesus. 
"Whence  knowest  thou  me"?  It  is  the  first  time 
that  Jesus  exhibits  to  men  supernatural  knowledge. 
Nathanael's  scepticism  vanishes  before  this  personal 
experience.  He  takes  Jesus  as  the  Son  of  God  and 
the  King  of  Israel.  He  leaps  to  the  full  length  and 
recognizes  the  divine  element  in  Jesus  "the  Son  of 
Joseph."  Jesus  prophesies  greater  things  than 
these  which  Nathanael  will  see,  for  Jesus  is  the  bond 
of  union  between  earth  and  heaven.  The  angels 
ascend  and  descend  upon  the  Son  of  Man,  as  Christ 
calls  himself  now  for  the  first  time.  It  is  significant 
to  note  how  the  chief  terms  used  of  Jesus  after- 
wards come  to  the  front  right  at  the  beginning. 
He  is  the  Messiah,  the  son  of  Joseph,  of  Nazareth, 
the  Son  of  Man,  rabbi  or  teacher,  the  King  of  Israel, 
the  Lamb  of  God,  the  Son  of  God. 

3.  The  First  Miracle. — The  devil  had  tried  to  get 
Jesus  to  work  his  first  miracle  for  himself.  He 
never  wrought  miracles  for  himself  simply,  though 
he  was  and  is  himself  the  great  Miracle.  John  the 
Baptist  wrought  no  miracle,  so  that  we  cannot  say 
that  a  prophet  was  expected  to  work  miracles  as  a 
matter  of  course.  The  miracles  of  Jesus  do  present 
difficulty  to  the  modern  scientific  mind.     They  ere- 


32  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

ated  difficulty  then  also,  so  much  so  indeed  that  the 
enemies  of  Jesus  attributed  them  to  the  devil.  But 
the  modern  approach  to  the  subject  of  miracles  is 
through  the  person  of  Christ.  If  he  was  in  reality 
the  Son  of  God,  it  is  not  surprising  that  he  should 
exercise  the  power  of  God.  The  remaining  diffi- 
culty lies  in  the  relation  of  God  to  the  world.  If 
God  has  not  exhausted  his  power  in  the  laws  of 
nature  known  to  us,  we  may  not  limit  the  expression 
of  his  will.  The  more  real  and  spiritual  God  is, 
the  less  reason  we  have  for  denying  his  power  in 
nature.  The  suggestion  for  this  miracle  came  from 
the  mother  of  Jesus,  and  shows  that  she  knew  that 
he  had  entered  upon  his  Messianic  work  and  that 
she  believed  in  him.  And  yet,  while  the  suggestion 
was  perfectly  natural  and  indicates  an  intimate  re- 
lation of  fellowship  between  mother  and  son,  a  de- 
mand was  created  by  it  for  an  outline  of  the  new 
situation.  The  very  fact  that  he  had  entered  upon 
his  Messianic  work  made  it  impossible  for  Mary 
longer  to  exercise  a  mother's  power  over  him.  Jesus 
had  no  harshness  in  the  use  of  the  word  "Woman," 
but  it  was  necessary  for  her  to  understand  the  new 
relation.  Perhaps  his  "hour"  had  not  come  for  a 
public  demonstration  or  issue  as  will  come  later  in 
Jerusalem.  He  did  adopt  the  suggestion  of  his 
mother  and  change  the  water  into  wine,  real  wine. 


THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS  33 

Jesus  thus  had  power  over  nature.  His  first  miracle 
is  as  hard  as  any.  He  is  Lord  of  nature,  and  the  water 
recognized   that   fact   and   responded   to   his   will. 

M  The  conscious  water  saw  its  God  and  blushed." 

Jesus  knew  how  to  mingle  in  social  life  in  such  a 
way  as  to  bless  and  gladden.  He  was  no  recluse 
who  held  aloof  from  men.  He  lived  in  the  world, 
but  was  not  tainted  by  the  world.  The  lover  of 
temperance,  as  Jesus  was,  is  not  driven  to  false  exe- 
gesis of  this  beautiful  incident  to  justify  his  plea 
even  for  local  option  or  prohibition.  The  light 
wines  of  that  time  were  taken  with  three  parts  of 
water  and  were  about  like  our  tea  or  coffee  in  effect. 
Jesus  was  no  advocate  of  the  modern  saloon  with 
its  traffic  in  human  souls.  The  glory  of  Jesus  was 
manifest  to  the  little  group  of  a  half  dozen  dis- 
ciples who  now  exercised  fresh  faith  in  the  new 
Master.  A  brief  visit  to  Capernaum  with  his  mother 
and  the  band  of  disciples  followed  the  wedding  feast 
at  Cana. 

4.  The  Issue  with  the  Jerusalem  Authorities. — It 
was  proper  that  Jesus  should  go  to  the  feast  of  the 
passover.  There  was  no  better  time  for  the  Mes- 
siah to  meet  the  religious  leaders  of  the  people  than 
at  this  great  feast.  Here  first  we  come  to  a  note  of 
time  in  the  public  ministry  of  Christ,  and  it  is  John 


34  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

who  gives  it,  not  the  Synoptics.  For  all  that  they 
tell,  the  work  of  Christ  might  have  culminated  in  a 
year,  though  a  crowded  one.  But  John,  if  we  take 
his  Gospel  to  be  fairly  chronological,  makes  at  least 
two  and  a  half  years  with  three  passovers,  with  the 
possibility  of  three  and  a  half  years.  So  it  was  in 
the  spring  of  A.D.  27,  let  us  say,  that  Jesus  is  in 
Jerusalem  for  the  first  time  since  his  baptism  some 
six  months  before.  He  is  in  the  temple,  where  he 
loved  to  be  when  a  boy  of  twelve,  the  house  of  his 
Father.  Here  also  he  realizes  that  it  is  his  Father's 
house  that  is  desecrated  with  the  barter  and  sale  of 
doves  and  sheep,  the  clink  of  money,  and  the  clamor 
of  the  money  changers  in  the  corridors  of  the  Court 
of  the  Gentiles.  He  is  not  engaged  in  theological 
discussion  as  before,  but  this  outrage,  this  graft 
which  enriches  the  priestly  rulers,  so  stirred  Jesus 
that  he  turns  reformer  at  once  and  asserts  his  pro- 
phetic and  Messianic  authority.  It  is  objected  that 
the  Synoptics  give  this  incident  at  the  close  of 
Christ's  ministry  and  not  at  the  beginning  as  John 
has  it.  But  surely  it  was  of  such  a  nature  as  to 
make  it  likely  to  occur  again  when  the  tradesmen 
returned  to  their  desecration.  The  influence  of 
Jesus  was  only  personal  and  momentary.  The 
men  rallied  and  wondered  what  they  went  out  for 
anyhow.     The  Jews  demanded  a  sign  in  proof  of 


THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS  35 

his  claims  in  doing  what  only  the  Messiah  had  a 
right  to  do.  So  here  at  the  start  the  issue  is  drawn 
between  Jesus  and  the  ecclesiastical  authorities. 
He  could  have  wrought  a  great  sign  and  made  verbal 
claim  to  be  the  Messiah.  Would  they  have  accepted 
him  ?  Nay,  rather  they  would  have  killed  him  now 
instead  of  three  years  hence.  He  does  give  them 
a  sign,  but  one  which  they  do  not  understand,  nor 
the  disciples.  He  gave  the  sign  of  his  death  and 
resurrection,  the  great  sign  on  which  he  staked  his 
whole  career.  It  was  in  symbolic  and  parabolic 
form,  but  for  that  very  reason  stuck  in  the  minds  of 
the  people,  though  with  a  misunderstanding,  as  is 
shown  when  at  the  trial  of  Christ  this  misinterpre- 
tation is  all  that  the  enemies  of  Jesus  can  find  against 
him.  And  on  the  cross  it  will  be  flung  in  his  teeth 
that  he  had  said  that  he  would  destroy  the  temple 
and  raise  it  again  in  three  days.  He  had  not  said 
that.  He  had  said  a  great  deal  more.  He  had 
said  that,  if  they  destroyed  the  temple  of  his  body, 
he  would  raise  it  up  in  three  days.  This  is  not  merely 
John's  interpretation  of  the  parable  of  Jesus.  It  is 
the  only  interpretation  in  harmony  with  the  career 
of  Christ. 

It  is  objected  that  it  is  an  anti-climax  for  Jesus 
thus  at  the  start  to  announce  his  death,  that  he 
could  have  no  spirit  to  go  on  if  that  was  the  foreseen 


36  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

end.  But  this  objection  takes  too  narrow  a  view  of 
the  career  of  Jesus  and  makes  his  soul  too  small. 
He  came  to  earth  at  all  to  die  for  sinners.  He 
would  not  commit  suicide.  He  would  let  events 
work  out  their  course.  He  would  not  hasten  his 
"hour,"  but  would  go  bravely  on  to  meet  it.  To 
take  out  from  the  mind  of  Christ  this  early  knowl- 
edge of  his  death  would  rob  him  of  the  chief  ele- 
ment of  transcendent  heroism,  would  make  him  a 
blind  groper  after  the  good,  rather  than  the  great 
constructive  spirit  who  saw  that  the  only  hope  of  the 
race  was  for  him  to  lay  down  his  own  life  for  it.  But 
in  doing  so  and  before  doing  so  he  will  do  a  man's 
part  also.  He  will  attack  the  evil  conditions  all 
about  him  in  religion  and  in  life.  He  will  set  up 
the  ideal  before  men,  both  in  word  and  deed.  His 
death  will  rest  upon  a  life  worth  living,  and  that 
will  be  to  men  the  appeal  of  the  ages.  This  is  a 
conception  worthy  of  Christ,  and  it  is  the  one  given 
in  the  Gospels.  He  will  begin  with  the  house  of  God. 
That  calls  for  cleansing.  Even  if  men  with  vested 
privileges  granted  or  winked  at  by  the  rulers  profane 
the  house  of  God,  he  will  protest.  He  will  protest 
even  if  they  come  back.  He  will  lift  his  voice  and 
his  hand  against  the  violators  of  law  and  decency. 
That  hand  is  lifted  yet  and  scourges  every  breaker 
of  law  and  order. 


THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS  37 

5.  An  Interview  with  a  Jewish  Scholar. — Nico- 
demus  felt  drawn  to  Jesus  as  one  scholar  is  to  an- 
other. Here  was  a  kindred  spirit,  a  man  versed  in 
the  deepest  things.  But  there  was  more.  The  signs 
that  he  wrought  in  Jerusalem  proved  to  him  that 
God  was  with  the  new  teacher.  And  yet  Jesus  was 
'persona  non  grata  to  the  Sanhedrin,  of  which  Nico- 
demus  was  a  member.  Christ  was  already  a  man 
taboo  with  the  doctors  of  divinity.  It  was  partly 
due  to  the  fact  that  Jesus  was  not  a  technical 
schoolman  in  their  sense,  not  a  graduate  of  their 
rabbinical  seminary,  had  not  learned  from  them; 
but  partly  also  to  an  element  of  novelty  in  his  teach- 
ings. His  standpoint  was  so  unconventional  and 
so  different.  They  could  not  at  first  place  him. 
He  was  unsafe  for  their  theology.  His  collision  in 
the  temple  accented  it  all.  The  rabbis  appre- 
hended trouble.  But  all  the  more  Nicodemus  was 
drawn  to  him. 

We  may  picture  this  timid  and  inquiring  scholar 
going  by  night  to  a  tent  on  the  hill  outside  of  the  city, 
with  many  a  covert  glance  by  the  way.  His  intro- 
ductory remarks  pave  the  way  for  more  intimate 
conversation.  Here  is  a  very  different  man  from 
either  Simon  or  Nathanael.  He  is  the  inquiring 
scholar  hedged  about  by  custom  and  intellectual 
abstraction,  drawn  by  truth  if  only  he  can  see  his 


38  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

way  through  the  maze.  Nicodemus  is  the  slave  of 
the  ceremonial  system,  and  does  not  know  it.  So 
Jesus  at  once  puts  before  him  the  heart  of  the  whole 
matter,  the  necessity  of  the  new  birth  for  entrance 
into  the  Kingdom  of  God.  The  helplessness  of 
Nicodemus  before  that  fundamental  idea  in  the 
kingdom  of  grace  shows  how  much  he  was  entangled 
in  the  meshes  of  legalism.  Jesus  attempts  to  help 
him  by  suggesting  an  advance  from  his  own  point 
of  view.  There  must  be  not  only  ceremonial  new 
birth,  which  was  easy  to  Nicodemus,  but  spiritual 
new  birth,  which  is  axiomatic  with  us.  "Ye  must 
be  born  anew." 

Nicodemus  had  come  for  light  and  he  had  received 
more  than  he  knew  what  to  do  with,  though  it  was 
destined  to  bring  him  into  the  Kingdom.  But 
Jesus  insisted  that  this  was  a  mere  elementary 
earthly  truth  in  the  Kingdom  and  not  a  heavenly 
truth  that  reached  back  to  the  eternal  purpose 
of  God  as  shown  in  the  necessity  of  the  atoning 
death  of  Christ.  This  "must"  took  Nicodemus  in 
too  deep,  and  we  still  wonder  over  the  depth  of  love 
as  set  forth  in  John  3 :  16,  whether  it  is  the  Evan- 
gelists own  interpretation  or  the  closing  words  of 
Jesus  to  Nicodemus. 

The  work  of  Christ  in  Judea  was  more  success- 
ful than  that  in  Jerusalem,  though  even  there  more 


THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS  80 

people  believed  nominally  in  Jesus  than  he  could 
trust.  In  Judea  the  tide  of  popularity  rose  so  high 
that  the  jealousy  of  the  Pharisees  was  aroused.  But 
the  Baptist  did  not  let  jealousy  enter  his  heart  when 
Jesus  passed  him  in  popular  favor.  The  arrest  of 
John  merely  showed  what  was  in  store  for  Christ 
when  the  issue  was  sharply  joined. 

6.  An  Interview  with  a  Samaritan  Woman. — It 
is  hard  to  put  ourselves  in  the  place  of  Jesus  as  he 
talked  with  the  Samaritan  woman  by  Jacob's  well. 
Everything  was  against  his  endeavoring  to  win  this 
one  lone  woman.  He  was  worn  out  with  a  long 
day's  mountain  travel.  He  was  hungry.  She  was  a 
woman,  and  a  rabbi  was  not  expected  by  the  Jews 
to  talk  in  public  with  a  woman.  She  was  a  Samar- 
itan, whom  the  Jews  hated  all  the  more  cordially 
because  she  was  half  Jew.  She  was  a  woman  who 
had  had  too  many  husbands  and  whose  character 
and  reputation  made  a  very  delicate  and  difficult  case 
to  handle.  Surely  here  was  a  more  hopeless  proposi- 
tion than  that  of  Nicodemus.  Every  reason  of  race 
prejudice  and  personal  inclination  argued  for  letting 
her  alone.  But  Jesus  never  rose  to  greater  heights 
than  when  he  roused  himself  to  win  this  sinful 
woman.  He  began  with  a  drink  of  water,  the  one 
common  topic  between  them.  There  is  no  finer 
study  in  the  method  of  soul-winning  than  in  the  su- 


40  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

preme  skill  shown  by  Jesus  here  in  overcoming 
every  obstacle  and  finally  reaching  the  conscience 
of  the  woman  herself.  She  was  eager  for  theologi- 
cal controversy  when  she  suspected  that  Jesus  was 
a  prophet.  That  was  her  use  for  a  preacher,  a  dis- 
pute. But  Jesus  held  her  to  the  point  and  re- 
vealed to  her  the  highest  word  that  he  had  to  give 
about  God  and  worship,  and  told  her  plainly  that 
he  was  the  Messiah,  a  thing  he  had  not  told  Nico- 
demus.  The  result  justified  the  patient  perse- 
verance of  Jesus,  for  her  conversion  led  to  that  of 
many  others.  Jesus  saw  in  the  saving  of  this  Sa- 
maritan woman  the  promise  of  victory.  The 
harvest  of  the  world  was  indeed  ripe  for  the  sickle 
of  the  reaper  when  such  a  woman  as  this  could  be 
converted.  The  harvest  is  still  ripe,  waiting  for 
the  reapers.  But  the  soul  of  Jesus  fed  on  this  blessed 
fruitage.  He  cared  naught  for  food  and  water  now. 
The  will  of  God  was  enough.  He  was  now  becom- 
ing the  Saviour  of  the  World,  for  even  Samaritans 
can  be  saved. 

7.  The  Call  to  Nazareth. — It  is  not  surprising 
that  Jesus  should  wish  to  visit  Nazareth.  Indeed, 
he  made  a  second  visit  later,  according  to  the  account 
in  Mark  and  Matthew.  It  was  only  fair  to  give 
Nazareth,  the  home  of  his  childhood  and  youth,  a 
good    opportunity.    True,    Jesus    remained    away 


THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS  41 

after  his  baptism  till  his  ministry  was  well  under 
way.  He  came  then  with  an  acquired  reputation 
as  a  rabbi,  and  with  even  more,  for  many  had  heard 
of  his  miracles.  But  with  some  there  was  lingering 
doubt  how  a  young  carpenter,  reared  in  their  town, 
whom  they  knew,  could  do  all  the  things  ascribed 
to  him.  There  must  be  a  mistake  somewhere,  they 
felt.  But  at  the  start  Jesus  was  treated  with  every 
courtesy.  When  he  read  the  famous  passage  in  the 
roll  of  Isaiah  and  gave  it  back  to  the  attendant, 
Jesus  sat  down  by  the  reading  desk.  That  was  the 
sign  that  he  was  going  to  make  an  address,  and  in- 
stantly all  eyes  were  fastened  on  him.  They  were 
on  the  qui  vivef  for  now  they  would  be  able  to  tell 
for  themselves  what  there  was  in  him  to  justify  his 
sudden  reputation  since  he  had  left  them. 

They  had  not  long  to  wait,  for  Jesus  claimed  the 
fulfillment  on  this  day  of  the  Messianic  promise 
just  read.  The  very  boldness  of  the  claim  won  a 
sympathetic  hearing  at  first.  Just  to  think  of  it! 
The  Messiah  has  arisen  in  our  town!  Their  pride 
was  aroused,  and  they  fell  under  the  spell  of  his 
wondrous  speech.  But  still,  was  not  this  Joseph's 
son?  Incredulity  was  expressed  in  their  faces  and 
perhaps  in  whispers.  It  is  a  mortal  offense  with 
some  people  for  their  neighbors  and  friends  to  suc- 
ceed beyond  them.     The  idea  of  superior  gifts  and 


42  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

work  is  out  of  the  question.  It  is  this  underlying 
resentment  that  Jesus  meets  when  he  interprets  it  by 
the  parable  or  proverb,  "Physician,  heal  thyself." 
They  were  longing  for  him  to  do  some  of  the  miracles 
of  which  they  had  heard.  After  all,  talk  was  easy. 
Work  a  miracle  or  two.  Jesus  could  interpret  ac- 
curately the  psychology  of  a  crowd.  But  instead  of 
accommodating  their  idle  curiosity,  he  gave  them 
a  stern  rebuke,  with  the  example  of  the  sovereignty 
of  God  as  shown  in  the  case  of  the  widow  of  Zare- 
phath,  and  Naaman  the  Syrian.  Nazareth  had  no 
natural  privileges  in  the  Kingdom  above  any  other 
town.  They  took  this  as  a  thrust  at  their  town 
pride,  and  instantly  anger  filled  them  all,  so  that 
they  attempted  the  life  of  the  hero  of  the  hour  be- 
fore. It  was  a  sad  outcome,  but  Jesus  was  not  sur- 
prised, for  he  said,  "No  prophet  is  acceptable  in  his 
own  country."  It  was  now  clear  that  Nazareth 
could  not  be  the  centre  of  the  Galilean  work.  Jesus 
had  been  too  popular  in  Judea  and  so  had  to  cease 
his  work  there.  But  he  is  not  too  popular  in  Naz- 
areth. 

8.  The  New  Home. — Where  should  Jesus  now 
make  his  headquarters?  It  must  be  somewhere  in 
Galilee.  Judea  had  become  impossible,  and  Sa- 
maria was  obviously  out  of  the  question.  In  Galilee 
no  town  was  more  cosmopolitan  than  Capernaum. 


HIE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS  43 

The  Pharisees  had  less  influence  in  Galilee  than  in 
Judea,  and  here  at  least  was  an  opportunity  of  sow- 
ing the  seed  of  the  Kingdom  free  from  the  domi- 
nating ecclesiastics  of  Jerusalem.  The  Gentile  ele- 
ment in  Galilee  was  still  considerable,  especially 
around  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  which  was  the  centre  of 
a  large  trade.  The  outer  world  pressed  upon  Caper- 
naum, though  the  Jews  had  a  synagogue  there,  the 
gift  of  a  generous  Roman  centurion.  Nazareth 
itself  was  near  one  of  the  great  caravan  routes  be- 
tween Egypt  and  Syria  and  Mesopotamia.  Aramaic 
and  Greek  were  the  languages  chiefly  heard,  both 
of  which  Jesus  and  the  disciples  probably  spoke  ac- 
cording to  occasion,  as  was  true  of  Paul  also. 

The  half  dozen  disciples  who  had  been  with  Jesus 
in  Judea  and  Samaria  seem  not  to  have  gone  with 
him  to  Nazareth,  but  rather  to  their  several  homes. 
Four  of  them,  two  pairs  of  brothers,  were  back  at 
their  fishing.  When  Jesus  came  to  Capernaum  to 
live,  he  soon  found  Andrew  and  Simon,  James  and 
John.  They  had  not  indeed  had  any  luck  on  this 
occasion,  and  were  mending  and  washing  their  nets. 
To  Simon  Jesus  suggested  that  he  put  out  in  his 
boat  and  try  again.  A  fisherman  can  always  try 
once  more.  But  Simon  had  no  further  hope.  "  But 
at  thy  word  I  will  let  down  the  net."  If  it  pleased 
Jesus,  he  would  try  once  more,  though  he  had  toiled 


44  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

all  night  and  caught  nothing.  The  result  humbled 
Simon  and  enabled  Christ  to  draw  a  valuable  spir- 
itual lesson  for  Simon  and  the  rest.  Will  he  have 
as  little  faith  as  a  fisher  of  men  ?  This  is  the  sec- 
ond time  these  four  men  follow  Christ,  though  not 
yet  as  Apostles.  They  continue  with  him,  leaving 
their  fishing  for  good. 

In  the  synagogue  at  Capernaum  Jesus  is  before 
a  strange  audience,  though  not  a  hostile  one.  What 
astonished  the  assembly  was  the  personal  independ- 
ence of  Jesus  as  a  teacher.  He  was  not  the  slave  of 
the  past,  as  the  usual  rabbi  was  who  was  afraid  of  a 
new  opinion  that  did  not  have  the  support  of  some 
learned  rabbi  of  old.  But  Jesus  taught  not  as  the 
scribes,  but  as  one  having  authority.  He  had  the 
authority  of  truth  and  not  the  dictum  of  some  self- 
appointed  custodian  of  orthodoxy.  It  had  been  a 
long  time  since  a  new  idea  had  been  expressed  in 
this  synagogue  and  it  created  a  commotion.  What 
the  world  needs  is  the  truth,  whether  new  or  old. 
A  lie  is  no  more  true  because  hoary  with  age.  A 
pulpit  should  not  have  the  dry  rot  nor  the  itch  for 
the  merely  new.  In  this  case  the  truth  was  a  sen- 
sation. "What  is  this?  A  new  teaching ?"  We 
have  here  also  the  first  incident  of  many  when  Jesus 
healed  a  poor  demoniac.  The  demon  recognized 
Jesus  as  the  Holy  One  of  God,  but  his  testimony 


THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS  45 

was  not  welcome  for  obvious  reasons.  It  would 
not  help  Jesus  to  have  such  attestation.  But  the 
people  were  amazed  at  his  power  to  cast  the  demon 
out.  There  are  serious  difficulties  connected  with 
the  subject  of  demons,  their  reality  and  their  rela- 
tion to  disease.  We  know  too  little  of  the  spirit- 
world  and  psychic  phenomena  to  be  able  to  deny 
the  reality  of  demons.  If  the  devil  exists,  demons 
may  without  doubt.  Missionaries  in  China  to-day 
claim  to  have  met  similar  phenomena  in  modern 
times.  One  is  slow  to  credit  Jesus  with  merely 
humoring  the  illusions  of  the  time.  The  Babylon- 
ian and  Persian  teachings  of  demons  do  not  prove 
necessarily  that  the  idea  of  Jesus  was  illusion  or 
delusion. 

The  life  at  Capernaum  was  manifestly  a  busy  one. 
On  this  very  Sabbath  Jesus  raised  Peter's  mother- 
in-law  from  a  fever.  Please  observe  that  no  pro- 
test is  made  on  this  Sabbath  against  the  cures 
wrought  on  this  day.  The  Pharisees  have  not  yet 
begun  to  work  against  him  in  Galilee.  One  of  the 
most  beautiful  scenes  in  the  life  of  Jesus  is  at  the 
close  of  this  day.  As  the  sun  was  setting,  he  stood 
in  the  door  of  the  house  and  healed  all  who  passed 
by.     His  name  and  fame  filled  all  the  town. 

9.  The  Lines  Drawn  in  Galilee  Also. — The  strain 
upon  Jesus  was  now  very  great.     We  find  him  rising 


46  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

a  great  while  before  day  to  secure  a  quiet  place  for 
prayer,  and  then  the  multitudes  seek  him.  Jesus  no 
longer  lingers  in  Capernaum,  but  makes  a  tour  of 
most  of  Galilee,  apparently  with  these  four  disciples. 
We  have  no  incidents  recorded  of  his  first  formal  tour 
of  the  country,  though  the  healing  of  the  leper  may 
be  one.  We  must  expand  the  general  statements 
made  in  the  Gospels  and  imagine  the  vast  amount 
of  work  done.  In  the  case  of  the  leper  so  much  ex- 
citement arose  that  Jesus  had  to  withdraw  again  to 
the  desert  places  to  pray.  He  had  strictly  charged 
the  man  not  to  tell,  but,  as  often  happens,  all  the 
more  the  report  spread. 

We  are  told,  however,  several  incidents  of  this 
period  falling  in  Capernaum  after  the  return  home. 
One  of  them  is  the  case  of  the  paralytic  let  down 
through  the  roof  because  of  the  press  at  the  door. 
The  significant  thing  here  is  that  the  Pharisees  are 
present,  and  eager  to  find  fault  and  make  charges 
against  Jesus.  This  is  the  first  time  that  the  Phari- 
sees appear  in  opposition  in  Galilee.  Christ  will 
no  more  have  a  free  hand  even  here.  It  is  to  be  ob- 
served also  that  they  come  not  only  "out  of  every 
village  of  Galilee,"  but  also  "out  of  Judea  and 
Jerusalem./'  these  "Pharisees  and  doctors  of  the 
law  sitting  by"  (Luke  5  :  17).  The  recent  tour 
had  stirred  up  the  waters  in  Galilee,  and  the  local 


THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS  47 

theologians  had  evidently,  appealed  to  Jerusalem 
for  help.  What  was  Jesus  to  do  in  the  midst  of  so 
much  traditional  orthodoxy?  They  had  already 
condemned  him  in  their  hearts  as  guilty  of  heresy. 
Their  eyes  gleamed  with  envy  and  they  smiled  with 
satisfaction,  the  long-bearded  hypocrites!  He  will 
not  attempt  any  hocus-pocus  now  that  we  are  here, 
for  we  are  ready  for  the  impostor!  Jesus  gave  them 
a  handle  at  once.  He  offered  the  paralytic  forgive- 
ness of  sins.  This  rankled  in  their  hearts,  for  ac- 
cording to  their  theology  no  one  can  forgive  sins  but 
God.  Hence  Jesus  had  claimed  to  be  God.  But 
even  so  they  only  felt  and  looked  their  indignation. 
They  were  not  so  brave  as  they  supposed.  But 
Jesus  knew  their  hearts  and  accepted  the  unexpressed 
challenge.  He  bade  the  paralytic  take  up  his  bed 
and  walk  right  then  and  there  as  a  proof  of  his 
power  on  earth  as  the  Son  of  Man  to  forgive  sins. 
It  was  audacious.  The  worst  offence  of  all  was  that 
the  palsied  man  did  get  up  without  even  asking  their 
permission!  "We  never  saw  it  on  this  fashion," 
the  people  said.  And  the  Pharisees?  They  now 
feared  him,  but  were  the  more  bent  on  his  ruin.  If 
let  alone  he  will  overturn  all  Pharisaical  theology. 
That  calamity  the  world  could  not  survive! 

Jesus  won  a  notable  disciple  when  Levi  the  publi- 
can  responded   to   his   invitation.     The   Pharisees 


48  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

would  not  have  asked  him  to  be  their  disciple.  "  Pub- 
licans and  sinners"  were  branded  together  as  the 
lowest  of  men.  This  was  worse  than  to  pick  up 
ignorant  fishermen  to  follow  him.  Perhaps  Levi 
was  impressed  by  the  very  fact  that  Jesus  broke  over 
social  caste  and  sought  him.  There  was  a  real  man 
in  this  publican,  and  he  instantly  went  with  Jesus. 
He  was  very  grateful  to  the  new  Teacher  and  loyal 
to  his  old  friends.  So  he  gave  Jesus  a  feast  and 
asked  a  great  multitude  of  publicans  and  other  sin- 
ners, and  Christ  accepted.  He  did  not  ask  the  Phar- 
isees, but  they  went!  They  would  have  declined  a 
formal  invitation.  They  were  too  pious  to  associate 
with  such  "trash."  It  was  a  custom  then  for  all 
who  wished  to  come  to  the  feast  and  stand  by  the 
wall  and  watch,  if  they  liked.  These  pious  Phari- 
sees and  their  scribes  (students) '  did  this.  They 
stood  off  and  made  remarks  about  Jesus  while  he 
enjoyed  the  feast,  a  delightful  occupation!  "He 
eats  and  drinks  with  publicans  and  sinners."  Jesus 
heard  their  talk  and  said:  "  Go  ye  and  learn."  This 
to  the  doctors  of  theology!  Yes,  go  ye  and  learn 
that  spirit  is  more  than  form  with  God,  though  not 
with  you.  Taking  the  Pharisees  at  their  own  esti- 
mate of  themselves,  Jesus  had  come  to  heal  the  sick, 
not  the  well. 

Growing  out  of  this  dispute  comes  the  discussion 


THE  FIRST  APPEAL  OF  JESUS  49 

about  fasting.  Even  some  of  the  disciples  of  John 
the  Baptist  are  led  by  the  Pharisees  to  complain  that 
the  disciples  of  Jesus  do  not  observe  the  stated  fasts. 
They  are,  therefore,  not  orthodox.  This  complaint 
gives  Christ  an  opportunity  to  draw  in  outline  by 
three  illustrations  (bridegroom,  new  garment,  wine- 
skin), the  vital  distinction  between  Christianity  and 
Judaism.  Christianity  is  spirit  and  Judaism  is 
form.  It  is  impossible  to  graft  Judaism  upon 
Christianity.  The  failure  to  see  this  nearly  wrecked 
Christianity  in  Paul's  day,  and  did  ultimately  make 
a  hybrid  type  of  religion  dominant  through  the  mid- 
dle ages,  to  the  lasting  injury  of  the  cause  of  Christ. 
For  the  first  time  we  see  Jesus  in  the  chamber  of 
death.  He  took  only  Peter,  James,  and  John,  and 
the  little  girl's  father  and  mother.  He  took  her  by 
the  hand  and  she  arose.  Death  could  not  stay 
where  Life  was  when  life  spoke.  If  this  miracle 
seems  hard  to  believe,  we  may  remind  ourselves 
that  all  are  hard  to  us  and  all  are  easy  to  God. 
Jesus  was  anxious  to  keep  this  great  deed  quiet, 
because  the  envy  of  the  Pharisees  had  already  been 
aroused  and  he  foresaw  renewed  hostility  on  their 
part.  So  in  the  case  of  the  two  blind  men,  he  charged 
that  no  man  know  it,  but  to  no  effect.  The  result 
was  what  Christ  expected.  Already  the  Pharisees 
dare  to  say,  "By  the  prince  of  demons  casteth  he 


50  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

out  demons."  They  did  not  deny  the  cure,  but 
they  attributed  it  to  the  devil.  The  demons  merely 
obliged  their  master. 

Jesus  is  no  longer  obscure  nor  unknown.  His 
appeal  has  been  heard  all  over  the  land.  He  is  the 
cynosure  of  all  eyes.  But  has  he  won  in  the  rapidly 
growing  struggle  with  the  Pharisees? 


CHAPTER  III 

THE  NEW  DEPARTURE 

"Take  my  yoke  upon  you,  and  learn  of  me" 
(Matt.  11  :  29). 

John  takes  up  the  narrative  again,  and  we  are  in 
Jerusalem  at  a  feast  (John  5:1).  We  do  not,  how- 
ever, know  what  feast  it  is,  nor  what  time  of  the  year 
Jesus  is  here.  All  things  considered,  we  may  take 
it  as  a  passover,  though  with  much  reservation  and 
uncertainty.  If  so,  the  ministry  of  Jesus  has  been 
going  on  a  year  and  a  half.  At  any  rate,  it  is  the 
second  time  that  we  find  Christ  in  Jerusalem,  both 
occasions  being  described  by  John,  who  gives  as  a  rule 
the  Jerusalem  or  Judean  ministry,  while  the  Syn- 
optics largely  present  the  Galilean  work.  When 
Jesus  was  here  before  he  had  a  certain  popularity 
with  the  people,  both  in  the  city  and  in  the  country. 
But  the  rulers  were  hostile  to  him.  Jesus  now 
comes  no  more  as  an  unknown  rabbi  from  Nazareth, 
but  as  a  teacher  and  miracle  worker  who  has  stirred 
all  Galilee.     He  has  a  great  reputation  already. 

1.  Conflict  over  the  Sabbath. — The  Pharisees  not 
simply  held  to  the  literal  and  ceremonial  regulations 

51 


52  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

in  the  Old  Testament,  but  they  had  added  many 
more.  Indeed,  they  had  made  the  day  a  burden 
instead  of  a  blessing.  A  large  part  of  Pharisaic  re- 
ligion consisted  in  seeing  to  it  that  other  people 
carried  out  to  the  letter  all  the  pettifogging  rules 
which  they  had  laid  down.  One  could  hardly  turn 
around  on  the  Sabbath  day  without  running  against 
one  of  the  Pharisaic  laws.  If  a  woman  looked  into 
a  mirror  on  the  Sabbath,  she  might  see  a  gray  hair 
and  be  tempted  to  pull  it  out.  To  wear  false  teeth 
on  the  Sabbath  was  to  carry  a  burden.  But  in  the 
case  of  Jesus  the  Sabbath  question  was  more  oc- 
casion than  cause.  They  had  long  ago  decided  to 
oppose  him  and  his  teachings.  In  Galilee  they 
found  fault  with  him  for  eating  with  publicans  and 
sinners,  for  not  making  his  disciples  fast,  for  assum- 
ing to  forgive  sins  and  hence  for  blasphemy,  for  being 
in  league  with  the  devil.  Each  new  link  that  they 
can  forge  in  the  chain  is  welcome. 

Jesus  was  not  asked  to  heal  the  man  by  the  Pool  of 
Bethesda.  He  was  a  stranger  to  the  impotent  man 
who  had  long  waited  by  the  pool  for  a  cure.  It  was 
the  Sabbath  day  and  Jesus  took  the  initiative. 
Though  the  poor  man  did  not  know  who  it  was  that 
told  him  to  get  up  and  walk  away  with  his  bed, 
the  very  thing  that  he  could  not  do,  yet  he 
somehow  was   impelled   to  try.     The  Jews,    who 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  53 

saw  him,  cared  little  about  his  being  healed.  That 
was  a  comparatively  small  matter.  The  import- 
ant thing  to  them  was  that  he  was  carrying  his 
bed  on  the  Sabbath.  The  man  felt  that  he  was 
guilty  and  laid  the  blame  on  the  man  who  had 
healed  him — strange  gratitude  surely.  To  cap  it 
all,  when  he  did  learn  who  had  healed  him,  he  went 
and  told  the  Jews. 

Jesus  had  not  courted  trouble  over  the  matter, 
but  he  would  not  run  from  it.  We  are  not  told 
what  the  form  of  persecution  was  which  they  first 
used  against  Jesus,  but  he  defended  himself  by  the 
example  of  the  Father.  The  defense  was  worse 
than  the  offense.  Now  they  sought  to  kill  him  be- 
cause he  made  himself  equal  with  God,  calling  God 
his  own  Father.  Jesus  did  not  deny  the  accusation. 
The  rather  he  admitted  it  and  proceeded  in  the  first 
formal  apology  of  his  person  and  work  that  we  pos- 
sess (John  5  :  19-47)  to  prove  that  he  is  equal  with 
the  Father  in  all  essential  things,  though  he  does 
nothing  contrary  to  the  Father.  On  the  other  hand, 
he  joyfully  does  the  Fathers  will,  and  the  Father 
has  set  his  seal  upon  him,  and  will  do  so  to  the  end. 
It  was,  as  we  say,  throwing  down  the  gauntlet  to  his 
enemies,  though  they  did  not  take  it  up.  They 
did  not  know  exactly  how  to  proceed,  for  the  man 
who  was  healed  was  a  tremendous  argument  for 


54  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

Christ.  They  were  no  match  for  him  in  debate, 
with  all  their  dialetical  subtleties.  But  the  wedge 
had  gone  in  deeper. 

2.  The  Battle  Renewed  in  Galilee. — To  the  Jeru- 
salem Pharisees  Jesus  was  now  a  common  Sabbath 
breaker.  On  his  return  to  Galilee  the  Pharisees 
appear  again.  While  going  through  the  wheat- 
fields  on  the  Sabbath,  his  disciples  pluck  some  of  the 
heads  and  rub  the  grain  out  in  their  hands.  The 
technical  offence  to  the  Pharisees  was  the  rubbing 
out  of  the  grain.  That  was  work.  Instantly  the 
Pharisees  make  the  attack  upon  the  disciples.  It  is 
wearisome  and  pitiful  to  think  of  having  to  deal 
seriously  with  such  hair-splitters.  But  Jesus  pro- 
ceeded to  defend  what  his  disciples  had  done  by 
five  arguments.  He  appealed  to  the  historical  ex- 
ample of  David  who  ate  the  shewbread  on  the  Sab- 
bath when  in  flight.  He  reminds  them  that  the 
priests  worked  in  the  temple  on  the  Sabbath,  and 
Jesus  claims  to  be  greater  than  the  temple.  He  re- 
calls the  message  of  God  in  Hosea:  "I  desire  mercy, 
and  not  sacrifice."  The  ceremony  counted  for 
nothing  with  God  unless  the  spiritual  worship  went 
along  with  it,  a  lesson  that  scribism  had  obscured 
and  one  that  the  prophets  had  great  difficulty  in  en- 
forcing. Besides,  man  was  not  made  for  the  Sab- 
bath, but  the  Sabbath  for  man,  an  obvious  truth, 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  55 

but  one  often  hid  from  view.  It  is  true  of  the  Bible 
itself.  Men  are  not  saved  that  there  may  be  some 
to  obey  the  Bible,  but  revelation  is  given  to  help 
men  to  come  to  God.  And,  to  end  the  whole  matter, 
Jesus  is  Lord  even  of  the  Sabbath.  Jesus  observed 
the  spirit  of  the  Old  Testament  teaching,  but  was 
not  a  slave  to  the  mere  form.  He  denied  that  what 
the  disciples  had  done  contradicted  the  real  import 
of  the  Old  Testament.  But  even  if  it  did,  he  claimed 
the  right  to  institute  a  new  order  of  things,  for  he  is 
greater  than  the  Sabbath.  This  point  he  did  not 
expand,  but  in  it  is  contained  the  germ  of  the  New 
Testament  attitude  towards  the  day  of  rest.  He 
had  brushed  off  his  enemies,  but  left  a  rankling 
sting  by  his  supreme  claim  concerning  the  day. 

The  Sabbath  controversy  goes  on  now  in  various 
parts  of  Palestine  to  the  end,  and  yet  the  enemies  of 
Christ  are  not  able  to  make  out  anything  against 
him  serious  enough  to  stand.  One  difficulty  with 
the  rabbis  was  that  they  did  not  themselves  strictly 
observe  what  they  so  diligently  preached  to  others. 
They  had  Pharisaic  orthodoxy,  but  not  Pharisaic 
orthopraxy.  Hence  they  could  never  go  to  the  limit 
in  the  matter.  On  the  very  next  Sabbath,  however, 
in  a  synagogue  in  Galilee  the  storm  breaks  out  again. 
This  time  the  Pharisees  are  ready  beforehand.  They 
seemed  to  know  that  Jesus  would  attend  this  syna- 


56  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

gogue,  and  were  watching  to  see  if  he  would  dare 
heal  the  poor  man  with  a  withered  hand  who  was 
there.  Would  he  do  it  when  they  were  on  hand  to 
expose  him?  They  felt  their  importance  keenly, 
these  regulators  of  the  faith.  But  Jesus  knew  their 
thoughts — solemn  thought  to  us — and  made  a  point 
of  the  matter.  He  made  the  man  step  out  where  all 
could  see  him.  Then  he  joined  issue  with  his  ene- 
mies. Much  depends  on  the  way  a  thing  is  put. 
Jesus  asked  if  it  was  right  to  do  good  or  to  do  harm 
on  the  Sabbath.  That  was  unanswerable.  Then 
he  asked  if  a  man  was  of  more  value  than  a  sheep. 
This  was  the  crux  of  the  whole  question.  They 
feared  to  answer  this.  Jesus'  eyes  flashed  with  anger 
over  them  as  he  bade  the  man  to  stretch  forth  his 
hand,  right  before  and  almost  at  the  Pharisees.  To 
the  Pharisees  this  utter  rout  was  unendurable,  and 
yet  what  could  they  do?  They  could  not  keep  the 
man  from  stretching  out  his  arm.  There  was  but 
one  thing  left.  They  would  kill  Jesus.  A  man  will 
never  forgive  you  for  giving  him  an  unanswerable 
argument.  It  is  a  mortal  offence.  They  even 
counsel  with  their  old  enemies,  the  Herodians, 
on  the  subject,  so  bitterly  do  they  now  hate  the 
Nazarene. 

3.  The  New  Organization. — The  need  of  it  is  now 
manifest.     We   need   not   speculate   on   what   was 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  57 

Christ's  plan  before  this  time,  nor  say  that  now  he 
made  a  radical  change  in  his  views.  There  is  noth- 
ing to  justify  such  a  statement.  What  is  clearly 
true  is  that  now  he  can  no  longer  wait  for  things  to 
take  their  course.  There  was  organized  opposition 
to  Jesus  with  headquarters  in  Jerusalem,  a  regular 
conspiracy  bent  on  leaving  no  stone  unturned  to 
compass  his  downfall.  Satan  is  carrying  out  his 
threat  with  speed.  He  has  arrayed  against  Jesus 
the  religious  leaders  of  the  time,  the  exponents  of 
the  traditional  orthodoxy  of  the  day.  The  devil 
becomes  anxious  to  preserve  the  harmless  faith  of 
the  Pharisees.  He  poses  as  the  champion  of  the 
faith.  Jesus  is  put  in  the  light  of  an  innovator,  a 
heretic.  If  Jesus  is  to  win,  he  must  conquer  rab- 
binical Judaism  as  well  as  the  powers  of  the  world 
of  sin.  However  much  Jesus  foresaw  all  this,  there 
was  inevitable  isolation  in  the  result.  He  came  as 
the  Messiah  of  his  people,  and  the  accredited  teach- 
ers of  the  time  shut  the  door  in  his  face. 

Nor  is  this  all.  He  had  some  true  believers,  but 
as  yet  no  organized  band  of  followers,  no  force 
bound  to  him  by  hooks  of  steel.  It  was  a  world- 
wide and  an  age-long  conflict.  Steps  must  be  taken 
looking  towards  the  future.  Already  half  of  the 
public  ministry  was  over. 

The   purpose  of   this   band   is   stated   in   Mark 


58  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

3:14f.  They  are  to  be  with  Jesus,  to  preach,  and 
to  have  authority  over  demons.  This  body  of  preach- 
ers was  not  a  local  church,  nor  the  church  general. 
It  is  a  special  body  of  men  chosen  for  a  special  pur- 
pose. They  are  to  be  charged  with  the  work  of 
starting  Christianity  upon  its  world  career.  They 
are  to  be  with  Jesus  till  he  returns  to  the  Father,  so 
that  they  may  learn  Christ  and  be  true  exponents 
of  him  and  his  ideas.  These  men  must  be  teachers 
of  the  Kingdom.  The  policy  of  Jesus  evidently, 
then,  is  to  teach  the  teachers.  Thus  he  will  guaran- 
tee the  proper  interpretation  of  his  message  and 
mission  and  the  work  of  the  Kingdom  of  God.  It  is 
true  that  the  work  of  Jesus  with  these  men  will  need 
the  further  teaching  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  but  the 
foundation  on  which  they  will  build  will  be  laid  by 
Jesus  himself.  When  this  group  of  men  shall  be 
trained  by  Jesus,  he  can  leave  the  work  to  their 
hands  under  the  guidance  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The 
great  Teacher  then  had  a  class  of  twelve  to  go  with 
him  constantly  for  nearly  two  years.  The  choice 
was  made  under  very  solemn  circumstances.  Jesus 
had  spent  a  whole  night  in  prayer.  It  was  a  crisis, 
for,  humanly  speaking,  all  depended  on  the  choice 
of  these  men.  He  talked  with  the  Father  all  night 
about  it.  In  the  gray  dawn  of  the  morning  he  came 
down  the  mountain  side  with  the  dew  of  heaven  on 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  59 

his  brow.  A  great  multitude  of  believers  and  of  un- 
believers was  assembled  already  in  the  early  morn- 
ing. He  seems  to  have  called  the  men,  "whom  he 
himself  would,"  up  to  him  out  of  the  crowd.  Then 
he  appointed  them  as  Apostles.  It  was  an  old  term, 
but  henceforth  it  was  to  have  with  them  a  new  mean- 
ing. Afterwards  he  came  down  with  them  to  a 
level  place  on  the  mountain.  Here  at  least  is  a 
nucleus.  Will  they  justify  the  choice  of  Jesus? 
He  had  risked  his  all  on  them  and  had  chosen  them, 
as  he  afterwards  said,  because  he  knew  them.  Some 
of  them,  a  majority  indeed,  had  been  with  him  al- 
ready a  good  while.  The  rest  Jesus  had  probably 
noticed  carefully. 

But  who  are  these  men?  Six  of  them  probably, 
Andrew  and  Simon,  James  and  John,  Philip  and 
Nathanael,  became  disciples  at  the  beginning  at 
Bethany,  beyond  Jordan.  Another,  Levi,  left  his 
publican's  seat  some  while  afterwards.  The  other 
five,  James,  the  son  of  Alpheus,  and  Thaddeus, 
Thomas,  Simon  the  Cananean,  and  Judas  Iscariot, 
meet  us  here  for  the  first  time.  They  are  all  of 
Galilee  save  Judas  Iscariot,  who  comes  from  Judea. 
This  fact  marks  him  off  from  the  rest  at  once,  but 
he  seems  to  have  business  capacity  (though  a  preach- 
er) and  soon  becomes  the  treasurer  of  the  band. 
There  are  three  groups  of  brothers,  Simon   and 


60  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

Andrew,  James  and  John,  James  the  son  of  Alpheus 
and  Judas  the  brother  of  James.  The  four  lists  that 
we  have  of  the  twelve  were  evidently  made  accord- 
ing to  later  developments  in  the  group.  Simon 
Peter  always  appears  first  and  Judas  Iscariot  last, 
save  in  Acts  when  he  has  dropped  out  entirely.  They 
fall  into  three  groups  of  four,  Philip  heading  the 
second,  and  James  the  son  of  Alpheus  the  third. 
Nathanael  appears  as  Bartholomew,  and  Thaddeus 
is  also  called  Judas  the  brother  of  James.  Simon 
the  Cananean,  or  Zelotes,  had  belonged  to  the  party 
of  zealots  who  later  brought  on  the  war  with  the 
Romans.  Four  of  them  were  fishermen.  None  of 
them  had  theological  training  until  now.  With 
Jesus  they  were  to  be  in  the  greatest  school  that 
earth  has  ever  seen.  Aristotle  taught  Alexander 
the  Great,  but  Jesus  was  the  teacher  of  these  men. 
They  had  less  to  unlearn  than  if  they  had  been  to 
Jerusalem  to  school,  but  they  still  shared  in  the 
common  theological  views  of  the  time.  It  will  be  a 
task  even  beyond  the  power  of  Christ  to  lift  these 
men  up  to  the  spiritual  interpretation  of  the  King- 
dom of  God  before  his  death  and  resurrection. 

Did  Jesus  make  a  mistake  in  choosing  these  men  ? 
Where  could  he  have  gotten  men  better  adapted  to 
his  purposes  ?  Not  in  Jerusalem  nor  in  Judea,  and 
Judas  came  out  of  Judea.     They  were  all  men  of 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  61 

ability,  as  the  sequel  shows.  No  rarer  spirit  has 
ever  lived  than  John.  Simon  Peter  was  versatile 
and  alert.  Andrew  was  a  man  of  counsel.  Thomas 
was  cautious.  Nathanael  (Bartholomew)  was  a 
man  free  from  guile,  if  a  bit  sceptical.  Levi  was  a 
man  of  methodical  business  habits.  Simon,  the 
zealot,  had  zeal  in  abundance.  James,  the  brother 
of  John,  was  one  of  the  chosen  inner  circle  of  three, 
and  a  man  to  be  trusted.  Philip  seems  to  be  prac- 
tical and  prudent.  Of  James  the  Less  and  his 
brother  Judas  (Thaddeus)  we  are  not  able  to  form 
a  very  clear  picture,  though  we  cannot  assume  that 
they  were  negative  characters.  Judas  once  shows  a 
lack  of  spiritual  insight  (John  14  :  22).  There  was 
thus  great  variety  in  personal  traits,  and  each  had 
his  strong  points.  Even  Judas  Iscariot  was  not 
without  special  aptitudes,  else  he  would  not  have 
been  treasurer  (so  as  to  absconding  treasurers  to- 
day who  would  not  have  been  trusted  if  they  had 
not  shown  capacity).  He  had  his  opportunity,  poorly 
as  he  used  it. 

4.  The  Declaration  of  Principles. — The  Sermon 
on  the  Mount  has  been  the  occasion  of  much  dis- 
cussion and  even  controversy.  No  other  words  of 
Jesus  stand  out  quite  so  sharply  as  these.  They 
are  commonly  taken  as  typical  of  the  mind  of  Christ. 
The  ideal  of  righteousness  here  set  forth  is  still  the 


62  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

goal  of  the  civilized  world  in  spite  of  the  notion  of 
a  few  that  the  teachings  of  Jesus  are  wholly  out  of 
sympathy  with  modern  life. 

The  occasion  of  this  discourse  seems  to  have  been 
the  choosing  of  the  twelve  apostles.  Luke  so  repre- 
sents the  matter,  and  he  is  usually  chronological. 
According  to  Matthew  the  Sermon  stands  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  Galilean  ministry,  more  as  a  type 
of  the  teaching  done  by  Jesus.  But  both  Matthew 
and  Luke  give  it  as  a  real  discourse  at  a  definite 
place.  They  do  not  differ  essentially  in  the  circum- 
stances, for  Luke's  "plain"  need  only  be  a  "level 
place"  as  the  revised  version  has  it,  probably  a 
level  place  on  the  mountain  such  as  one  finds  on 
the  Horns  of  Hattin  near  Tiberias.  From  this  level 
place  Jesus  probably  went  up  on  the  mountain  side 
a  little  way  and  sat  down  to  address  the  people. 

But  we  are  not  to  think  of  Jesus  as  speaking  only 
to  the  twelve  or  simply  to  believers,  for  both  Matthew 
and  Luke  mention  the  presence  of  the  multitudes, 
Luke  indeed  recording  the  fact  that  they  came  all 
the  way  from  Jerusalem  to  Tyre  and  Sidon.  Many 
Gentiles  were  probably  on  hand,  or  certainly  many 
Greek-speaking  Jews.  It  is  possible,  though  not 
certain,  that  Jesus  on  this  occasion  spoke  in  Greek. 
But  while  the  discourse  was  general  in  its  nature 
and  suitable  for  all,  it  had  a  special  application  to 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  63 

the  twelve  and  may  be  compared  with  the  closing 
address  to  them  on  the  night  before  his  death,  as 
given  in  John  14 :  17.  It  is  a  long  journey  between 
these  two  occasions.  The  reality  and  unity  of  the 
Sermon  may  therefore  be  assumed.  Matthew  has 
much  more  than  Luke,  but  chiefly  things  that  con- 
cerned his  attitude  towards  the  Jewish  teaching. 
The  reports  in  Matthew  and  Luke  begin  and  end 
alike  and  agree  in  general  argument.  It  is  possible, 
though  not  necessarily  true,  that  some  of  Christ's  later 
sayings  may  have  been  put  into  this  great  address. 
But  it  is  far  more  probable  that  the  same  or  similar 
sayings  occurring  at  other  points  were  simply  re- 
peated by  Jesus  on  other  occasions.  Repetition  is 
not  simply  allowable;  it  is  necessary  for  effective 
service,  especially  in  the  case  of  a  popular  teacher 
who  had  to  meet  different  audiences  in  various  parts 
of  the  land.  This  sermon  is  admitted  by  all  to  have 
essential  rhetorical  unity  as  reported  by  Matthew 
and  Luke.  The  Sermon  on  the  Mount  is  a  fine  ex- 
ample of  the  teaching  of  Jesus.  The  element  of 
parable  is  not  as  pronounced  as  in  some  of  the  later 
discourses,  but  it  is  here  in  the  case  of  the  two  ways, 
the  two  builders,  and  in  numerous  figurative  allusions. 
Here  are  sharp  distinctions  drawn,  antithesis,  invec- 
tive, paradox,  illustration,  precept,  warning,  appeal. 
But  one  must  not  make  the  mistake  of  supposing 


64  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

that  Jesus  has  on  this  occasion  said  all  that  he  has 
to  say  in  condensed  form.  By  no  means.  Many 
great  ideas  taught  by  Jesus  are  not  even  alluded  to 
here.  Others  are  merely  assumed  or  implied,  as  the 
new  birth,  for  instance.  The  disciples  were  not 
yet  ready  for  all  Christ  had  to  say,  nor  will  they  be 
ready  for  all  by  the  time  Jesus  comes  to  die.  The 
Holy  Spirit  will  take  up  the  teaching  and  carry  it  on. 
But  Christ  has  laid  down  a  platform  of  very  impor- 
tant principles  pertaining  to  the  Kingdom  of  heaven. 
He  by  no  means  wishes  men  to  understand  that  this 
is  all  the  teaching  that  they  need,  though  one  can 
readily  admit  that  this  is  enough,  and  too  much  for 
many.  Those  who  decry  theology  the  most  and  ap- 
peal to  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  as  the  sole  stand- 
ard for  men  are  likely  to  be  the  very  ones  who  fall 
farthest  short  of  the  ideal  of  human  life  here  out- 
lined. This  ideal  of  righteousness  is  impossible 
save  to  one  who  has  a  new  heart  to  begin  with  and 
the  help  of  the  Holy  Spirit  all  through  to  the  end. 
But  this  clear-cut  epitome  of  ethical  principles  made 
a  pronounced  impression  then  and  does  to-day  soar 
above  all  human  ethical  standards.  The  people 
wondered  at  these  words,  and  the  world  is  wondering 
still.  This  is  probably  not  a  complete  report  of  the 
Sermon,  but  a  brief  abstract,  the  most  striking  things 
that  were  remembered  and  told  over  and  over. 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  65 

There  is  some  difference  of  opinion  as  to  the  theme 
of  the  Sermon  (as  often  to-day  about  sermons),  be- 
cause Luke  does  not  give  what  we  have  in  Matt. 
5  :  17-20.  There  Christ's  Idea  of  Righteousness 
seems  to  be  set  forth  as  the  theme.  And  even  in 
Luke  this  is  the  implied  subject  of  discussion.  It  is 
introduced  by  the  Beatitudes  and  illustrated  and 
discussed  from  various  points  of  view.  Christ's 
Idea  of  Righteousness  is  to-day  the  world's  Ideal 
of  Righteousness,  though  one  cannot  say  that  the 
world  as  yet  approximates  its  ideal.  But  this  much  is 
gained,  to  have  put  the  goal  before  the  world.  At  one 
blow  Jesus  struck  down  the  standards  set  up  by  the 
scribes  and  Pharisees.  He  even  said  that  if  his  hear- 
ers did  not  do  better  than  that,  they  had  no  hope  at 
all.  The  scribes  and  Pharisees  were  the  religious 
leaders  of  the  time.  The  pity  and  the  pathos  of 
the  situation!  The  boldness  of  Christ's  concep- 
tions is  here  manifest.  He  did  not  compromise  nor 
hesitate.  He  was  laying  foundations  for  all  time. 
He  went  to  the  heart  of  things  and  saw  them  as  they 
are.  Hence  his  teaching  is  universal,  pervasive, 
eternal. 

The  Beatitudes  form  the  introduction  to  this  great 
discourse.  It  is  not  a  new  style  of  speech,  occur- 
ring often  in  the  Psalms.  There  are  two  parts  to 
each   Beatitude   and   special   significance  in  each. 


66  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

Luke  gives  only  four  which  are  balanced  by  four 
woes.  The  most  outstanding  thing  about  the  Be- 
atitudes is  that  Christ's  conception  of  happiness 
differs  so  radically  from  that  of  the  teachers  of  the 
time,  both  Jewish  and  Greek.  The  formal  ceremoni- 
alism of  the  Pharisees  was  set  at  naught  by  the  lofty 
spirituality  here  insisted  upon.  The  mere  Sadducee 
would  find  little  to  attract  him  in  this  transcendental 
spiritual  philosophy.  If  any  Greeks  were  there, 
they  would  be  equally  puzzled.  The  Epicurean 
would  prefer  the  world  of  sense  to  this  happiness  of 
the  spirit.  The  Stoic  would  understand  the  spir- 
itual plea  better,  but  it  was  all  too  altruistic  for  him. 
All  of  them  had  rather  do  the  persecuting  than  en- 
dure it.  Vengeance  was  sweeter  to  them  than 
mercy,  pride  than  humility,  self-conceit  than  crav- 
ing to  be  better.  Purity  of  heart  was  too  inconven- 
ient for  a  work-a-day  world.  Only  in  portions  of 
the  Old  Testament,  especially  the  Psalms,  do  we 
find  an  approach  to  this  sublime  spiritual  idealism. 
The  Beatitudes  imply  a  new  heart  or  regeneration. 
The  Kingdom  of  heaven  belongs  to  those  who  re- 
joice in  these  qualities.  In  truth  no  one  else  will  re- 
joice in  them.  It  should  never  be  forgotten  that  the 
possession  of  the  spiritual  renewal  lies  at  the  basis 
of  Christ's  idea  of  righteousness.  It  is  impossible 
to  all  others.     It  is  mere  mechanical  imitation  to 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  67 

seek  to  reach  this  ideal  without  beginning  with  the 
foundation  laid  by  Jesus.  The  Kingdom  of  God 
comes  before  the  righteousness.  "Seek  first  the 
Kingdom  of  God  and  his  righteousness." 

The  ideal  of  righteousness  is  unfolded  from  vari- 
ous points  of  view.  It  must  exceed  the  standard 
of  the  scribes,  the  accepted  teachers  of  the  time 
among  the  Jews.  These  scribes  taught  the  Old 
Testament  plus  their  own  interpretation  of  it,  a 
second  Bible  covering  up  the  first.  One  specimen  of 
that  teaching  is  here  condemned  by  Jesus, "  and  hate 
thine  enemy"  (Matt.  5  :  43).  But  it  is  not  enough 
to  seek  mere  formal  obedience  to  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. Revelation  is  progressive.  Jesus  does  not 
set  aside  the  Old  Testament  teaching  on  these  points 
as  wrong.  It  is  merely  inadequate  for  the  new  time. 
He  carries  the  teaching  further  in  the  same  direc- 
tion, from  letter  to  spirit,  as  illustrated  by  murder, 
adultery,  oaths,  retaliation,  enemies.  His  own 
words  here  are  not  to  be  pressed  literally  at  all 
points.  He  used  paradox  and  even  hyperbole  to 
make  an  impression.  But  his  point  is  plain.  In 
fact,  the  ideal  of  Christ's  teaching  is  the  Father. 
"Ye  therefore  shall  be  perfect  as  your  heavenly 
Father  is  perfect"  (Matt.  5:48).  Mere  labored 
conformity  to  this  or  that  detail  will  not  answer. 

Nor  is  the  practical  righteousness  of  the  Pharisees 


68  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

one  whit  better  than  this  unsound  teaching  of  the 
traditionalists.  It  was  vitiated  by  a  grievous  fault, 
that  of  self-consciousness.  Alms,  prayer,  fasting, 
were  all  done  to  be  seen  of  men.  Missing  that,  all 
was  lost  to  the  Pharisee.  Virtue  to  him  was  not  its 
own  reward.  A  man  must  be  known  to  give  alms. 
If  necessary,  sound  a  trumpet  before  you,  so  as  to 
attract  a  crowd  and  be  seen!  The  model  prayer  of 
Jesus  brings  all  life  into  relation  to  the  Father  and 
puts  his  Kingdom  first.  It  is  not  original  in  many 
of  its  phrases.  How  could  a  model  prayer  be  wholly 
original  ? 

The  warning  against  worldliness  hits  a  sensitive 
place.  Trust  in  God  may  be  all  very  well,  but  the 
worldly-wise  had  rather  keep  one  eye  on  the  main 
chance.  But  the  good  eye  is  when  both  eyes  focus 
on  the  same  point.  It  is  not  forethought  that  Jesus 
here  condemns,  but  anxiety.  It  is  not  work,  but 
worry  that  wears  out  the  machinery  of  life.  It  is 
always  a  sign  that  something  is  the  matter  when  the 
machine  makes  too  much  noise.  The  birds  sing 
as  they  take  what  God  sends.  Most  men  assume 
that  they  are  themselves  right.  Hence  they  have  the 
privilege  of  passing  judgment  on  others.  It  is  second 
nature,  if  not  first.  It  is  easier  to  see  the  mote  in 
the  brother's  eye  than  the  big  beam  in  one's  own. 
Jesus  does  not  mean  that  we  shall  not  form  opinions 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  69 

about  people.  That  cannot  be  helped.  He  does 
mean  that  we  shall  not  be  hasty,  captious,  nor  un- 
just in  our  criticisms.  The  habit  of  criticism  is 
very  vicious.  One  can  so  easily  be  snappish  and 
disagreeable. 

The  Golden  Rule  is  not  original  with  Jesus, 
though  he  first  put  it  so  crisply  in  the  positive  form. 
The  practice  of  it  is  the  original  thing  with  Jesus. 
The  man  who  says  that  this  is  his  religion  has  some 
justification  in  theory,  for  Jesus  said  that  it  is  the 
law  and  the  prophets.  Clearly,  however,  Jesus 
meant  that  this  was  the  sum  of  the  law  and  the 
prophets  as  they  bore  upon  our  relations  with  our 
fellows.  If  it  be  extended  toward  God,  everything 
would  be  included  with  no  reservations.  How- 
ever, a  word  of  caution  is  needed  to  one  who  is  so 
easily  satisfied.  This  inclusive  principle  of  life  is 
the  very  hardest  one  to  live  up  to.  It  means  far 
more  than  mere  good-natured  well-wishing  for 
everybody  and  everything.  It  is  the  practice  of 
love  towards  God  and  man  in  the  widest  sense.  It 
is  more  than  mere  abstinence  from  harm  to  our 
neighbors.  It  is  to  be  an  exponent  of  every  positive 
grace  and  virtue. 

The  narrow  gate  and  the  broad  way  are  favorite 
images  in  ethical  teaching.  The  idea  is  in  Psalm  1. 
It  appears  in  the  Two  Ways,  in  Barnabas,  etc.     It 


70  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

is  an  obvious  parable  of  life.  It  is  the  straitened, 
not  necessarily  the  straight,  way.  The  supreme 
test  is  that  of  life.  Character,  not  profession,  is  the 
element  that  endures  the  crucible  of  this  examina- 
tion. Many  will  glibly  say  then  who  are  not  willing 
to  do  now.  Excuses  and  explanations  are  always 
handy,  and  mere  talk  is  very  easy.  One  is  not  to 
imagine  that  Jesus  has  changed  his  theology  by  this 
demand  that  the  tree  be  judged  by  its  fruits.  If  the 
Kingdom  of  heaven  with  the  new  birth  lies  at  the 
basis  of  Christ's  idea  of  righteousness,  the  man 
whose  house  stands  because  built  upon  the  rock 
pictures  graphically  the  consummation  of  that  right- 
eousness. The  good  tree  does  bear  some  good  fruit. 
There  is  a  note  of  confidence  as  well  as  of  warning 
here.  Jesus  differs  from  all  other  ethical  teachers 
in  just  this.  He  gives  the  power  to  put  into  practice 
these  ethical  ideals.  It  is  just  because  the  Kingdom 
is  in  a  man  that  he  can  finally  reach  Christ's  ideal. 
He  can  and  he  will.  The  final  and  supreme  test 
of  the  seed  is  the  fruit.  The  man  whose  perfected 
life  conforms  to  the  great  ideal  is  indubitably  one 
whose  heart  was  renewed  by  the  spirit  of  God. 
Here,  then,  is  a  vital  system  of  ethics.  It  is  right- 
eousness applied  to  life,  and  that  bears  fruit.  The 
teaching  is  no  longer  in  the  clouds,  but  is  brought 
down  to  men.     No  wonder  that  the  people  were 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  71 

astonished  at  such  words.  It  was  the  glint  of  the 
sunshine  through  the  clouds  and  fog  of  rabbinism. 
Jesus  actually  had  ideas  of  his  own  and  spoke  with 
the  authority  of  transparent  truth,  not  the  mechanical 
repetition  of  former  rabbis.  His  words  still  challenge 
our  admiration  and  appeal  to  our  highest  selves.  To 
be  what  Jesus  here  commends  is  to  be  the  noblest 
type  of  man  that  was  ever  presented  to  the  world, 
for  the  conscience  of  Jesus  has  become  the  delicate 
standard  for  all  the  world.  His  condemnation  leaves 
no  further  appeal. 

5.  The  Despair  of  John  the  Baptist. — At  the  very 
time  that  Jesus  was  planning  for  an  aggressive  cam- 
paign with  some  organization,  John  the  Baptist  was 
languishing  in  the  prison  at  Machaerus.  His  friends 
were  allowed  to  see  him,  but  it  was  a  dreary  life,  so 
utterly  different  from  the  wild  freedom  of  the  wilder- 
ness and  the  favor  of  the  great  multitudes.  After 
all  the  excitement  to  come  to  this  dark  solitude 
was  too  much  even  for  a  robust  nature  like  John's. 
Doubts  would  come  even  about  Jesus  whom  he  had 
baptized  and  identified  as  the  Messiah.  Logic  in  a 
cell  and  out  by  the  Jordan  is  not  the  same  thing. 
If  Jesus  was  the  Messiah,  why  was  he  so  slow  in 
setting  up  the  Kingdom  ?  Why  did  he  let  John  stay 
in  prison  ?  Perhaps  after  all  there  was  some  mistake. 
Maybe  Jesus  was  only  another  forerunner  like  him- 


72  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

self,  and  the  real  Messiah  was  still  to  come.  Re- 
ports of  the  work  of  Jesus  came  to  John  occasionally. 
Probably  the  account  of  the  raising  of  the  son  of  the 
widow  of  Nain  reached  him  and  quickened  his  de- 
pressed spirit  into  fresh  interest.  So  he  sent  two 
of  his  disciples  with  the  pathetic  appeal  to  Jesus  for 
more  light.  Jesus  was  busy  at  the  time  with  his 
cures  and  kept  on  till  he  was  done.  Then  he  bade 
these  two  disciples  to  go  tell  John  what  they  had 
seen  and  heard.  He  added  a  beatitude  to  the  ef- 
fect that  he  was  blessed  who  found  no  occasion  of 
stumbling  in  him — a  gentle  rebuke  to  John.  Jesus 
was  not  without  sympathy  for  John  at  such  a  time, 
but  the  most  effective  reply  was  work,  not  words. 
He  was  doing  the  work  of  the  Messiah.  Jesus 
treated  this  request  from  John  seriously.  There  is 
nothing  to  indicate  that  it  was  mere  make-believe 
on  John^  part.  If  we  wonder  that  John  could  fall 
into  doubt,  let  us  recall  the  case  of  Elijah,  the  proto- 
type of  John,  and  even  the  mother  of  Jesus  later. 
After  all,  Jesus  was  not  the  conventional  Messiah, 
and  hid  in  the  dark  as  John  now  was  he  could 
easily  go  astray. 

But  Jesus  took  occasion  to  pass  a  wonderful  trib- 
ute upon  John,  one  that  would  have  cheered  him 
greatly  could  he  have  heard  of  it.  He  recalls  the 
multitudes  who  flocked  to  the  wilderness  to  see,  not 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  73 

a  reed  shaken  in  the  wind,  not  an  effeminate  man  of 
the  city,  but  a  son  of  the  soil,  a  prophet  and  more, 
a  man  as  great  as  any  born  of  woman,  an  epoch- 
making  man  who  divided  the  past  from  the  future. 
He  was  the  close  of  the  old  age  and  the  beginning  of 
the  new,  so  that  in  one  sense  all  those  in  the  new 
have  an  advantage  over  him.  He  is  Elijah  that  was 
to  come.  True,  he  was  not  accepted  by  all  men, 
as  Jesus  was  not.  The  Pharisees  and  Sadducees 
rejected  his  baptism,  while  the  masses  and  even  the 
publicans  justified  and  glorified  God  because  of 
John.  To  the  leaders  John  was  too  much  of  an 
ascetic.  He  was  peculiar,  different  from  other  folks. 
His  dress,  his  diet,  his  home  all  marked  him  from 
men.  But  to  the  same  men  Jesus  was  equally  ob- 
jectionable. He  did  live  with  men,  ate  their  food, 
lived  in  their  homes.  They  called  him  therefore  a 
wine-bibber  and  a  glutton,  a  palpable  falsehood. 
But  they  had  to  find  fault  with  him  somewhere. 
They  said  he  was  too  much  like  other  people  for  a 
rabbi!  So  it  goes.  What  is  a  preacher  to  do? 
How  can  he  please  the  people  ?  It  is  doubtful  if  he 
can  succeed,  and  he  ought  not  to  succeed  if  he  makes 
merely  that  his  aim.  The  best  that  one  can  do  is 
to  do  right  and  let  the  results  speak  for  themselves. 
Wisdom  is  justified  in  the  end  by  her  children  (or 
works).     In  the  long  run  the  man  wins  who  goes 


74  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

straight  ahead  and  does  his  duty.  It  was  not  long 
now  before  Herod  yielded  to  the  wiles  of  his  wife 
Herodias  and  was  caught  in  her  trap  to  kill 
John.  She  had  never  forgiven  him  for  rebuking 
her.  She  held  it  against  him  (iveixev  avrw).  The 
disciples  of  John  "went  and  told  Jesus."  He  would 
understand. 

6.  The  Son's  Relation  to  the  Father. — In  this  great 
crisis  of  his  career  Jesus  is  fully  conscious  that  the 
Father  is  with  him.  In  Matt.  11  :  25-30  we  have  a 
section  that  is  identical  in  tone  and  point  of  view 
and  even  in  style  with  the  Gospel  of  John.  Chorazin, 
Bethsaida,  Capernaum  will  reject  him  and  be  pun- 
ished, but  Jesus  sees  victory  in  the  future.  All 
things  have  been  delivered  into  his  hands  by  the 
Father.  No  one  really  knows  him  but  the  Father, 
as  no  one  really  knows  the  Father  but  the  Son. 
The  way  to  the  Father  depends  on  the  will  of  the 
Son,  a  marvellous  claim  of  elective  power.  On  the 
basis  of  that  power  he  extends  the  most  gracious  in- 
vitation to  the  weary  and  heavy-laden.  He  invites 
all  to  come  to  school  to  him  and  promises  that  his 
yoke  will  be  easy  and  his  burden  light.  The  twelve 
Apostles  are  already  in  his  school.  He  asks  for  more 
pupils  who  are  willing  to  learn  of  one  who,  though 
the  Son  of  God  with  all  knowledge  and  power,  is 
yet  meek  and  lowly  in  heart.     Who  can  refuse  to 


THE  NEW  DEPARTURE  75 

learn  from  such  a  Teacher  whose  words  linger  in 
the  mind  like  sweet  bells  at  eventide?  No  teacher 
ever  made  such  an  offer  as  Jesus  does  here.  He 
will  indeed  put  us  under  the  yoke,  but  the  yoke  is, 
after  all,  easy  and  the  burden  grows  light. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  OR  THE  REJECTION 
OF  A  SPIRITUAL  KINGDOM 

"Would  ye  also  go  away?"  (John  6  :  67). 

Jesus  will  now  endeavor  by  vigorous  work  to  win 
a  foothold  for  the  Kingdom  in  Galilee.  He  has  al- 
ready preached  much  in  various  parts  of  the  coun- 
try, but  the  results  have  not  been  large.  The  crowds 
are  great  and  excitement  is  intense. 

1.  He  Makes  a  Second  Tour  of  Galilee,  taking  the 
twelve  with  him,  his  new  band  of  disciples.  It  will 
be  an  experience  of  much  value  to  them.  Certain 
women,  a  noble  band  of  workers,  followed  also  dur- 
ing this  preaching  tour.  How  early  the  women 
began  to  work  for  Jesus,  and  how  faithfully  they 
have  served  him!  A  church  is  never  better  than  its 
women,  and  not  always  as  good.  These  good 
women  ministered  of  their  substance  for  the  sup- 
port of  Christ  and  his  company.  Perhaps  Judas 
later  was  influenced  by  this  fact  when  he  resented 
Mary  of  Bethany's  spending  so  much  money  for  the 
ointment,  though  he  spoke  of  the  poor  at  the  time. 
Mary  Magdalen  was  one  of  this  band,  and  is  now 

76 


THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  77 

mentioned  for  the  first  time.  She  is  not  the  woman 
that  was  a  sinner  who  at  the  Pharisee's  feast  washed 
the  feet  of  Jesus.  That  legend  is  an  unpardonable 
slander  on  Mary  Magdalen.  Nor  was  Mary  Magda- 
len the  same  woman  as  Mary  of  Bethany,  the  sister 
of  Lazarus.  We  know  nothing  of  this  journey  save 
the  general  statements  made,  but  we  can  easily 
imagine  the  character  of  the  work  done. 

2.  Jesus  Repels  the  Attacks  of  His  Enemies. — He 
has  a  new  cross  to  bear,  that  of  misunderstanding  at 
home.  His  mother  and  his  brethren  have  become 
puzzled  over  all  this  stir  and  confusion.  The  crowds 
are  so  great  that  they  fail  to  eat.  The  family  con- 
clude that  he  is  beside  himself  and  come  to  take  him 
home.  He  has  gone  crazy!  Poor  Mary!  It  must 
have  been  a  sad  hour  for  her.  Even  John  the  Bap- 
tist had  doubted,  and  now  his  mother  has  given  up 
hope  about  him.  It  has  all  turned  out  so  differ- 
ently from  the  way  that  she  expected  the  Messiah 
would  do.  He  was  still  just  a  mere  preacher,  with 
great  crowds,  it  is  true,  but  he  was  not  now  claiming 
in  so  many  words  to  be  the  Messiah.  Mary  doubt- 
less heard  this  explanation  of  Jesus'  conduct  from 
some  of  her  friends  who  wanted  to  put  the  best  face 
possible  on  the  situation.  Our  "friends"  sometimes 
are  excessively  kind  in  explaining  our  conduct. 
The  people  were  all  seeking  to  explain  the  career 


78  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

of  Jesus,  while  he  studiously  avoided  saying  anything 
that  would  give  his  enemies  a  handle.  So  the 
mystery  about  him  grew  and  deepened. 

But  the  Pharisees  were  not  so  charitable  in  the 
construction  that  they  put  upon  the  matter.  They 
had  already  hinted  at  their  view.  One  day  when 
the  multitudes  in  their  amazement  went  so  far  as 
to  ask,  Is  this  the  Son  of  David  ?  the  Pharisees  re- 
torted that  he  was  in  league  with  Beelzebub,  the 
prince  of  demons !  That  is  the  true  explanation  of  his 
miracles,  they  said.  It  was  a  shock  to  the  multitude 
and  was  a  public  attack  right  in  the  presence  of  Jesus 
which  could  not  be  passed  by.  They  were  at  some 
distance  from  him,  but  he  knew  their  thoughts  and 
called  them  to  him.  They  had  made  a  bold  shot 
and  a  desperate  one.  Jesus  claimed  to  be  the  ser- 
vant of  God;  in  reality  he  was  the  agent  of  Beelzebub. 
The  issue  was  fairly  joined.  Jesus  replied  with  a 
string  of  sententious  aphorisms  (parables)  that  cut 
to  the  quick.  He  points  out  the  absurdity  of  their 
charge,  for  Satan  would  be  casting  out  Satan,  a 
thing  he  would  never  do.  He  uses  the  argumentum 
ad  hominem  on  them.  They  claimed  also  to  cast 
out  demons.  By  whom  did  they  do  it?  It  was  a 
fair  turn.  Jesus  could  use  this  weapon  without  com- 
mitting himself  to  the  reality  of  their  claim.  Here 
is  a  reductio  ad  absurdum.     Christ  then  presses  the 


THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  79 

alternative  that  he  cast  out  demons  by  the  spirit  of 
God  rather  than  by  the  devil.  The  conclusion  is 
that  the  Kingdom  of  God  has  come  upon  them.  It 
was  a  complete  turning  of  the  tables,  but  Jesus  is 
not  done  yet.  They  have  themselves  committed 
the  unpardonable  sin  of  attributing  the  manifest 
work  of  the  Spirit  of  God  to  the  power  of  the  devil. 
That  was  inexcusable  and  would  never  be  forgiven. 
They  were  guilty  of  an  eternal  sin.  It  was  more 
excusable  if  one  blasphemed  Jesus,  who  was  man  as 
well  as  God.  He  was  the  Son  of  Man.  Even  now 
Christ  is  not  through  with  his  arraignment.  With 
something  of  the  fire  of  John  the  Baptist  and  of  his 
own  later  denunciation  of  his  enemies  (Matt.  23), 
he  turns  upon  them  and  calls  them  "offspring  of 
vipers."     They  are  evil  and  can  only  speak  evil. 

One  would  have  thought  that  the  Pharisees 
would  have  withered  away  under  this  righteous 
denunciation.  But  some  of  them  blandly  stepped 
up  and  asked  that  Jesus  work  a  sign!  They  prob- 
ably meant  it  in  ridicule,  but  they  got  still  more  de- 
nunciation. Christ  calls  them  "  an  evil  and  adulter- 
ous generation."  They  repeat  the  usual  Jewish 
idea  of  the  Messiah,  that  he  will  come  with  spectacular 
display.  Jesus  gives  them  the  sign  of  his  death 
and  resurrection,  with  a  reference  to  the  story  of 
Jonah.     The  sign  of  Jonah  was,  of  course,  lost  upon 


80  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

them,  though  Jesus  expressly  said  that  the  Son  of 
Man  should  be  three  days  and  three  nights  in  the 
heart  of  the  earth,  i.  e.,  three  days  as  men  count 
days,  not  meaning  to  accent  unduly  night  from  day. 
He  reminds  them  how  the  men  of  Nineveh  repented 
at  the  preaching  of  Jonah,  a  thing  which  they  were 
not  doing. 

The  mother  and  brethren  of  Jesus  press  up  to  the 
house  to  have  a  word  with  him  and  take  him  home. 
Jesus  "  looked  round  on  them  which  sat  round  about 
him "  and  said :  "  Behold,  my  mother  and  my  breth- 
ren." He  was  no  longer  to  be  commanded  even  by 
his  mother.  He  had  entered  a  larger  fellowship  of 
the  Spirit  to  which  he  admitted  every  one  who  did 
the  will  of  God.  His  disciples  were  his  real  kindred, 
for  at  this  moment  those  bound  to  him  by  the  ties  of 
the  flesh  had  failed  to  understand  him.  Mary, 
though  so  close  to  Jesus,  just  now  had  lost  her  way. 
But  she  will  find  it  again  and  some  day  even  his 
brothers  will  believe. 

3.  Jesus  Adopts  a  New  Style  of  Teaching. — It  is 
not  the  first  time  that  Jesus  used  parables,  but  the 
first  time  that  he  had  made  a  point  of  doing  so. 
Those  used  theretofore  had  been  brief  and  isolated. 
On  this  occasion  they  are  many  and  at  much  length. 
But  from  now  on  they  form  a  marked  characteristic 
of  his  teaching  and  make  a  definite  turn  in  his  method 


THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  81 

of  instruction.  Jesus  will  bear  the  closest  scrutiny 
as  a  teacher  who  followed  the  deepest  laws  of  nature 
in  his  efforts  to  reach  the  hearts  of  men,  followed 
them  naturally  and  almost  artlessly,  while  we  blunder 
on  and  painfully  discover  some  of  the  great  prin- 
ciples of  teaching.  It  is  one  of  the  hopeful  signs  of 
modern  times  that  we  are  seeing  the  importance  of 
studying  the  pupil  as  well  as  the  subject  to  be  taught. 
Jesus  in  this  very  context  urged  his  hearers  to  take 
heed  what  they  heard  and  how  they  heard. 

The  parable  is  not  an  invention  of  Jesus.  The 
Jewish  rabbis  were  fond  of  using  this  form  of  in- 
struction. There  is  nothing  to  prevent  any  modern 
teacher  from  using  the  parable,  and  some  do.  But 
the  parables  of  Jesus  so  far  surpass  those  of  all  other 
men  that  the  rest  sink  away  into  oblivion.  His  para- 
bles ring  clear  and  true  and  perfect.  They  are  not 
overdone  nor  underdone.  They  illustrate  rather 
than  darken  the  point.  This  is  by  no  means  the 
least  noteworthy  fact.  The  term  parable  is  used  in 
a  variety  of  ways,  but  the  essential  idea  is  that  of 
an  objective  parallel  to  moral  or  spiritual  truth 
(irapapoXrj).  On  this  occasion,  as  usual,  the 
parables  of  Jesus  grew  out  of  the  circumstances. 
The  hostile  attitude  of  friends  and  enemies  on  his 
busy  day  gave  the  tone  to  this  entire  group.  They 
had  accused  him  of  being  in  league  with  the  devil. 


82  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

Hence  they  did  not  deserve  to  receive  more  of  the 
teaching  of  Jesus.  The  use  of  parables  now  served 
to  hide  the  mysteries  of  the  Kingdom  from  his  ene- 
mies, while  the  spiritually  minded  would  remem- 
ber the  wonderful  story  and  by  and  by  understand 
the  teaching  contained  in  it.  The  harshness  of  this 
judgment  upon  the  enemies  of  Christ  is  much  re- 
lieved when  the  actual  circumstances  of  this  day  are 
perceived.  The  day  will  come  when  the  Pharisees 
will  see  the  point  of  those  parables  directed  against 
them. 

It  is  no  wonder  that  Jesus  wished  to  get  out  of 
the  stuffy  hostile  atmosphere  of  the  house  and 
into  the  bracing  air  of  beautiful  Galilee.  But  even 
here  he  found  a  crowd  and  sat  down  in  the  boat  and 
taught  the  multitudes  on  the  shore.  The  people 
were  astonished  as  he  taught  them  in  parables,  and 
even  the  disciples  could  not  understand  him.  We 
are  such  slaves  to  routine  and  intellectual  ritual  that 
the  new  gives  us  a  jolt.  We  do  not  know  how 
many  parables  Jesus  spoke  on  this  day.  Matthew 
gives  seven  and  Mark  one  more,  but  he  spoke 
"many  such  parables,"  it  is  added.  Things  new 
and  old  Jesus  brought  out  of  his  store.  Some  were 
spoken  after  he  left  the  shore  and  went  back  to  the 
house.  Two  of  them  (the  Sower  and  the  Tares) 
were  explained  by  Jesus  at  the  request  of  the  dis- 


THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  83 

ciples.  They  serve  as  models  for  the  interpreta- 
tion of  the  parables  that  are  not  explained. 

The  eight  that  are  preserved  for  us  from  this  day's 
teaching  fall  into  four  pairs:  the  Sower  and  the  Seed, 
the  Tares  and  the  Net,  the  Leaven  and  Mustard 
Seed,  the  Hid  Treasure  and  the  Pearl  of  Great  Price. 
They  illustrate  together  many  sides  of  the  Kingdom 
of  heaven,  which  is  indeed  like  a  diamond  with 
numerous  facets;  and  again  the  Kingdom  of  God  is 
a  vital  growth  and  cannot  be  analyzed,  as  life  refuses 
to  be  put  under  the  microscope.  The  Kingdom  of 
God  has  various  results  due  to  the  diversity  of  soil, 
and  the  secret  of  its  growth  in  the  heart  is  like  that 
of  nature.  The  line  of  cleavage  between  those  who 
have  the  Kingdom  and  those  who  have  not  is  not 
made  perfectly  clear  as  yet.  They  grow  in  the  same 
field  (the  world)  till  the  harvest  time.  The  growth 
of  the  Kingdom,  while  slow  and  from  small  begin- 
nings, is  sure  and  pervasive.  It  will  ultimately  cover 
the  earth.  Meanwhile,  spite  of  much  evil  and  dis- 
couragement, many  will  find  joy  in  the  Kingdom 
and  consider  it  the  greatest  treasure  of  earth.  There 
will  be  other  great  groups  of  parables,  but  none  will 
surpass  in  suggestiveness  this  first  one. 

4.  Jesus  in  Heathen  Territory. — It  had  been  a  day 
of  stress  and  storm,  the  sample  of  many  in  the  life 
of  Jesus.     The  wedge  had  entered  deeper  and  the 


84  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

cleft  was  wider  between  Jesus  and  the  rulers.  The 
iron  had  indeed  entered  the  soul  of  Christ.  With  a 
heavy  heart  and  a  weary  body  he  sank  down  into 
the  stern  of  the  boat  "even  as  he  was"  and  pushed 
out  with  the  disciples  at  eventide  to  cross  over  the 
lake.  Perhaps  the  wind  and  the  waves  would  bring 
rest.  No  wonder  that  Jesus  was  soon  asleep. 
When  the  sudden  squall  from  the  north  fell  down 
upon  the  little  lake  and  tossed  the  water  into  fury, 
Jesus  slept  on  till  the  excited  disciples  awoke  him 
with  a  cry  of  despair.  He  spoke  to  the  wind  and  the 
sea  and  they  obeyed  him;  they  did,  though  the  Phari- 
sees had  just  reviled  him.  The  disciples  marvel  as 
to  what  manner  of  man  he  is.  They  had  taken  him 
to  be  the  Messiah,  but  it  was  not  perfectly  clear  to 
their  minds  what  the  Messiah  would  be.  They 
grew  in  perception  of  the  content  of  the  term  Mes- 
siah to  the  end  of  their  career.  There  was,  there- 
fore, a  twofold  development.  Jesus  revealed  him- 
self more  and  more  to  the  disciples,  and  they  grew 
in  apprehension  of  him.  On  the  shore  the  Master 
had  an  experience  of  horror.  It  was  in  the  region 
of  Decapolis  at  the  village  of  Khersa  (Gerasa)  not 
far  from  Gadara.  The  wild  demoniac  rushing  along 
among  the  rocks  was  not  a  sight  to  give  rest  of  spirit. 
And  even  the  sea  had  turned  to  storm.  But  at  least 
Jesus  gave  peace  of  heart  to  this  unfortunate  man. 


THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  85 

The  mystery  of  the  demoniacal  possessions  never  ap- 
pears darker  than  in  this  incident.  The  destruction 
of  the  swine  added  to  the  ravings  of  the  man  make 
a  dreadful  background  in  the  twilight  on  this  heathen 
shore.  The  mystery  of  evil  is  not  relieved  by  the 
denial  of  the  devil  and  demons.  The  presence  of 
disease  here  may  or  may  not  be  in  conjunction  with 
the  power  of  the  evil  one.  The  assumption  that 
Jesus  was  merely  accommodating  himself  to  custom 
in  speaking  of  demons  cannot  solve  all  the  difficulties 
concerning  the  demon  possession.  As  previously 
said,  we  know  too  little  about  psychic  matters  to  say 
the  final  word  here.  But  let  us  at  least  rejoice  that 
Jesus  is  master  over  both  sin  and  disease.  He  will 
sometimes  bless  those  who  do  not  appreciate  it. 
The  people  of  the  community  begged  Jesus  to  leave 
their  shores  for  good,  but  the  picture  of  the  man, 
once  so  wild,  sitting  clothed,  in  his  right  mind  is  a 
comfort  to  those  who  battle  with  sin  in  country  or 
in  city.  Here,  where  no  Pharisees  are  to  molest, 
Jesus  tells  the  man  to  go  to  his  house  and  tell  what 
great  things  God  has  done  for  him. 

5.  Jesus  Makes  a  Last  Visit  to  Nazareth. — Naz- 
areth did  not  deserve  this  second  opportunity. 
Some  scholars  indeed  deny  that  it  was  so,  but  on 
the  whole  it  seems  probable  that  this  is  not  the  early 
visit  recorded  by  Luke.     It  is  not  surprising  that 


86  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

Jesus  should  once  more  come  to  Nazareth,  the  home 
of  his  childhood,  in  spite  of  the  treatment  received 
the  last  time.  It  was  his  own  country.  True 
enough,  as  he  finds,  a  prophet  has  no  honor,  no  last- 
ing honor,  in  his  own  country,  among  his  own  kin, 
and  in  his  own  house.  But  he  would  give  them  their 
chance.  They  are  astonished.  They  are  incredulous. 
How  can  it  be  ?  Where  did  it  all  come  from  ?  We 
know  his  family  and  we  know  him.  They  stumbled 
at  him  and  even  refused  to  believe  what  they  saw 
with  their  own  eyes.  In  such  a  sceptical  atmos- 
phere Jesus  did  few  mighty  deeds.  So  great  in  fact 
was  their  unbelief  that  he  marvelled  at  it.  And  this 
at  Nazareth.  It  must  have  been  a  sad  look  that  Jesus 
gave  Nazareth  as  he  saw  it  for  the  last  time  and  passed 
over  the  hill  and  out  of  sight.  Who  will  welcome 
Jesus  now?  The  heathen  region  of  Decapolis  had 
turned  him  away.  His  own  home  had  pushed  him 
aside.  Jerusalem  was  bent  on  his  destruction. 
Will  Galilee  endure  him,  when  she  knows  the  truth  ? 
6.  A  Third  Tour  of  Galilee. — This  tour  will  settle 
the  matter  so  far  as  Galilee  is  concerned.  It  will  be 
the  last.  The  occasion  was  the  compassion  of  Jesus 
for  the  multitudes.  He  had  indeed  a  little  band  of 
laborers,  but  they  were  utterly  unable  to  cope  with 
the  situation  in  Galilee.  The  harvest  was  great  and 
the  laborers  few.     The  remedy  suggested  by  Christ 


THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  87 

for  this  new  recruiting  dilemma  is  prayer  to  the 
Lord  of  the  Harvest.  Somehow  we  fail  to  em- 
phasize the  one  item  laid  upon  preachers  by  Jesus, 
that  they  pray  for  other  preachers  to  be  raised  up. 
There  can  be  no  jealousy  here,  for  it  is  a  world 
need. 

But  these  twelve  must  go  and  reap  what  they  can. 
So  Jesus  sends  them  forth  for  the  first  time  without 
him.  They  have  had  much  instruction  and  obser- 
vation. Now  they  can  put  it  into  practice.  It  is 
one  thing  to  study  about  preaching.  It  is  quite  an- 
other thing  to  preach.  Will  they  succeed  as  they  go 
and  preach  the  Kingdom  of  God  ?  Will  sinners  be 
converted  under  their  preaching  ?  Will  the  demons 
go  out  at  their  command  ?  Who  does  not  recall  his 
first  experience  in  leading  a  soul  to  Christ?  The 
Master  will  follow  them  to  see  how  their  work  turns 
out,  for  much  depends  on  these  men.  In  the  strug- 
gle with  the  Jerusalem  authorities  they  had  the  power 
and  prestige  of  State  and  the  strength  of  prejudice. 
What  if  the  disciples  fail  utterly  after  all  their  train- 
ing? 

Jesus  renews  his  instructions  to  them,  or  rather 
gives  them  in  condensed  form  the  main  ideas  that 
they  will  need  for  this  tour,  incidental  details  as  well 
as  fundamental  principles.  Some  of  the  things  here 
enjoined    were    afterwards    expressly    changed    by 


88  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

Jesus,  as  the  direction  not  to  go  in  the  way  of 
the  Gentiles  or  the  Samaritans.  The  "Hardshell" 
spirit  has  always  made  a  literal  interpretation  of  the 
words  of  Jesus  on  this  point,  but  with  blind  obscur- 
ing of  the  historical  situation  and  the  later  commands 
of  the  Master.  But  let  no  one  think  that  common- 
sense  details  as  to  food,  clothing,  manners  have  little 
value.  They  go  largely  to  determine  the  ultimate 
success  of  every  minister. 

The  point  that  Jesus  laid  most  stress  on  was  the 
spirit  with  which  they  should  go.  They  go  forth  as 
sheep  in  the  midst  of  wolves,  a  vivid  picture  of  help- 
lessness. But  they  are  not  to  fear  the  wolves.  If 
they  are  persecuted  in  one  city,  they  will  go  on  to 
the  next.  The  one  to  fear  is  God,  not  man.  After 
all,  Jesus  came  to  send  a  sword,  not  peace.  This 
seems  like  a  flat  contradiction  of  what  Christ  had 
said  elsewhere.  But  we  must  put  together  all  that 
he  said,  however  paradoxical  it  may  appear.  Then 
the  result  will  be  clear.  The  man  who  cringes  with 
fear  to  save  his  life  from  the  wolves  will  lose  his  life. 
This  is  the  paradox  of  courage  and  sacrifice,  but  it  is 
the  law  of  life.  Along  with  dove-like  innocence, 
they  are  to  have  the  wisdom  of  serpents.  It  is  the 
combination  that  Jesus  commands,  not  the  isolated 
possession  of  either  quality.  So  the  new  preachers 
of  the  gospel  went  forth  into  all  Galilee.     They  did 


THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  89 

cast  out  many  demons  and  preached  the  gospel  of 
the  Kingdom. 

The  dread  of  Herod  Antipas  was  one  result. 
The  disciples  manifested  due  courage  and  achieved 
some  degree  of  success.  Galilee  was  apparently 
stirred  to  the  foundation  by  this  concerted  cam- 
paign. News  of  the  commotion  reached  Herod 
Antipas  who  was  already  the  victim  of  his  fears. 
He  had  never  felt  right  about  the  death  of  John  the 
Baptist,  and  was  anxious  to  see  if  it  was  not  John 
come  to  life  again.  Others  thought  Jesus  was 
Elijah  or  another  of  the  prophets.  But  Jesus  studi- 
ously kept  out  of  the  way  of  Herod,  a  name  that 
boded  no  good  to  him. 

7.  Will  the  Galileans  Accept  a  Spiritual  Messiah  ? 
— As  yet  they  do  not  fully  understand  what  Jesus 
claims  to  be.  They  know  him  as  a  wonderful  teach- 
er, a  worker  of  miracles,  a  man  who  has  won  the 
enmity  of  the  ecclesiastical  forces  in  Jerusalem,  who 
is  reviled  by  the  Pharisees  in  Galilee,  but  who  is  im- 
mensely popular  with  the  people.  He  had  not  said 
to  them  that  he  was  the  Messiah.     Who  is  he  ? 

Great  as  was  the  favor  in  which  Jesus  was  held 
by  the  people,  the  feeding  of  the  five  thousand  men, 
besides  women  and  children,  carried  the  enthusiasm 
beyond  all  bounds.  Christ  and  the  disciples  had 
just  returned  from  the  great  tour  of  Galilee  and  were 


90  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

seeking  the  hillsides  near  Bethsaida  Julias  for  rest. 
But  a  great  host  of  people  awaited  him  there. 
They  lined  the  mountain  eager  for  his  words  and 
his  works.  Jesus  stood  out  in  full  view  of  all  who 
had  come.  His  heart  was  tender  towards  the  multi- 
tude. He  taught  them,  and  he  did  more.  He  offered 
to  feed  the  entire  host  with  a  few  loaves  and  fishes 
from  a  lad  who  was  there.  It  was  a  glorious  scene 
as  with  their  colored  garments  they  reclined  in  rows 
like  garden  beds  on  the  green  grass.  They  saw  the 
constant  dispensing  of  fish  and  loaves  from  the 
hands  of  Jesus,  and,  what  was  more,  they  ate  them. 
There  was  but  one  conclusion.  He  was  the  Messiah. 
We  will  take  him  to  Jerusalem  and  make  him  King. 
No  matter  what  the  Pharisees  think.  We  know 
that  Jesus  is  the  Messiah.  We  will  set  up  the  Messi- 
anic reign  in  Jerusalem  and  drive  out  the  hated 
Romans  and  win  the  world  for  the  Jews.  That  was 
the  Messianic  hope  of  the  Pharisees.  It  was  the 
voice  of  the  people,  but  not  the  voice  of  God.  The 
voice  of  the  people  is  vox  dei  if  it  is  not  vox  diaboli. 
This  time  it  was  the  same  temptation  that  Satan  had 
offered  Jesus  in  the  beginning.  Christ  saw  that  he 
must  act  quickly.  So  he  dismissed  the  people  to 
their  homes  and  sent  the  disciples  back  in  the  boat. 
He  himself  went  up  into  the  mountain  to  talk  with 
the  Father  who  alone  would  understand  him  and  his 


THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  91 

loneliness.  There  he  found  the  sympathy  that  he 
needed.  He  won  his  victory  again  over  this  fresh 
temptation,  but  he  lost  the  Galileans  as  we  shall  soon 
see.  To  the  disciples  Jesus  at  first  seemed  like  a 
spectre  as  they  see  him  gliding  over  the  water  towards 
them.  Peter  was  bold  enough  to  wish  to  walk  on 
the  water  with  him  till  he  saw  the  wind  coming  and  his 
heart  sank,  and  so  did  he.  In  the  boat  the  disciples 
worship  Jesus  as  the  Son  of  God. 

Christ  was  now  at  the  height  of  favor  with  the 
Galileans.  He  was  the  man  of  the  hour  with  the 
people;  yes,  the  man  of  the  hour.  Was  he  the  man 
of  all  time  with  them  ?  Jesus  was  determined  to  let 
the  multitude  know  his  true  character.  They  la- 
bored under  a  misapprehension.  He  will  not  employ 
terms  to  give  his  enemies  a  club  to  use  on  him,  but 
the  Galileans  must  know  that  he  does  not  claim  to 
be  a  temporal  Messiah.  He  has  not  come  to  fulfill 
their  political  dreams.  He  has  come  to  give  them 
eternal  life,  a  far  greater  blessing,  if  they  only  knew 
it.  So  Jesus  makes  a  point  of  coming  over  to  the 
synagogue  the  next  morning  in  order  to  tell  the  peo- 
ple the  truth.  He  would  like  to  have  their  love  and 
loyalty,  but  on  proper  terms.  The  Master  bluntly 
told  them  that  all  they  wished  was  to  get  the  loaves 
and  fishes.  Step  by  step  he  seeks  to  lead  them  on 
to  wish  for  the  meat  that  abides  to  eternal  life,  to 


92  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

eat  the  true  bread  of  God,  which  is  Jesus  himself, 
to  take  him  as  the  bread  of  life,  in  a  word  to  "eat" 
him.  A  perfect  storm  at  last  broke  loose  in  the  syna- 
gogue when  it  dawned  on  the  people  that  he  claimed 
to  have  come  down  from  heaven  and  to  be  himself 
the  bread  of  eternal  life.  Their  rage  was  assisted 
by  keen  scepticism  which  scouted  his  claims  and  the 
possibility  of  eating  him.  These  rationalists  finally 
wrangled  with  each  other  and  strode  out  in  disgust. 
One  thing  was  now  certain.  Jesus  had  deliberately 
broken  his  hold  on  a  large  part  of  the  Galilean  popu- 
lace. He  was  no  longer  a  popular  idol  with  them. 
But  the  matter  did  not  stop  here.  Christ  had  in 
the  audience  of  professed  disciples  those  who  found 
this  a  hard  saying,  especially  hard  now  that  so  many 
had  gotten  up  and  gone  out.  Their  theological  diffi- 
culties increased  till  they  too  began  to  leave.  Peo- 
ple go  in  herds.  They,  too,  stalked  out.  Finally 
all  had  left  Jesus  save  the  twelve.  This  then  was 
the  outcome  in  Capernaum  when  the  people  began 
to  understand  what  Jesus  really  claimed  to  be.  If 
that  is  the  kind  of  a  Messiah  that  he  is,  we  do  not 
want  him!  The  campaign  in  Galilee  has  definitely 
failed.  Christ  had  no  sure  foothold  in  Judea  nor 
Samaria.  It  is  only  one  year  now  till  the  end.  He 
has  labored  probably  two  and  a  half  years,  and  al- 
most  nothing   is    the   spiritual    result.     He   knew 


THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  93 

crowds,  but  it  saddened  Christ  when  under  the  fatal 
test  this  assemblage  melted  away. 

Jesus  turned  to  the  twelve.  What  will  they  do? 
It  was  a  solemn  moment  in  his  ministry.  Once 
more  all  hinged  on  them.  Had  they,  too,  succumbed 
to  the  outgoing  tide?  They  were  still  here  in  the 
house,  but  did  they  wish  to  go?  Were  they  loyal 
yet  in  heart  to  Christ?  "Would  ye  also  go  away?" 
Simon  is  the  speaker.  His  reply  indicates  that  they 
had  considered  going.  How  could  they  help  it? 
But  they  had  decided  to  stay  with  him.  For  one 
thing,  to  whom  should  they  go  ?  There  was  no  hope 
back  with  the  Pharisees.  Besides,  they  have  a  set- 
tled trust  and  experimental  knowledge  that  he  is 
the  Holy  One  of  God.  It  is  not  a  new  experience 
with  them.  They  have  had  it  from  the  first,  but 
with  varying  lights  and  shadows  over  this  blessed 
hope.  Now,  as  he  has  told  most  about  himself, 
they  are  drawn  most  to  him.  They  would  come 
closer  and  learn  more.  This  then  is  the  joy  of  Jesus. 
He  has  these  men  at  any  rate.  But  even  one  of 
them  is  a  devil. 

8.  The  Jerusalem  Pharisees  Renew  their  Attack. — 
It  was  an  opportune  time  after  the  breach  between 
Jesus  and  the  populace  in  Capernaum.  So  the 
regulating  committee  from  Jerusalem  boldly  chal- 
lenge the  orthodoxy  of  Jesus  on  the  question  of  eat- 


94  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

ing  with  unwashed  hands.  His  disciples  had  been 
found  guilty  of  this  heinous  crime.  To  their  minds 
it  brought  up  the  whole  question  of  ceremonial  re- 
ligion. The  disciples  of  Jesus  had  transgressed  the 
tradition  of  the  elders.  They  did  not  say,  but  as- 
sumed, that  this  was  also  the  command  of  God. 
Now  right  here  is  where  they  missed  it.  Jesus  did 
not  object  to  washing  the  hands  before  meals.  That 
was  a  good  and  a  proper  thing  to  do.  What  he  did 
object  to  was  making  a  doctrine  out  of  this  very 
proper  custom,  a  doctrine  on  a  par  with  fundamental 
spiritual  matters. 

With  keen  irony  the  Master  exposed  the  hypocrisy 
of  these  champions  of  ceremonial  orthodoxy  who 
violated  with  impunity  the  command  of  God  and 
bound  upon  others  the  tradition  of  men,  who  knew 
how  to  get  the  credit  for  punctilious  observance  of 
these  traditions  without  the  trouble  and  privation 
of  strictly  keeping  them,  whose  orthodoxy  consisted 
in  seeing  that  other  people  obeyed  them,  and  not  in 
observing  them  themselves.  You  make  void  the 
word  of  God  by  your  tradition  "and  many  such 
things  ye  do."  This  sword  cut  through  the  armor  of 
self-righteous  complacency  with  which  they  had  ap- 
proached Christ.  They  would  even  wink  at  robbery 
of  father  and  mother  under  the  traditional  use  of  "  Cor- 
ban, "  especially  if  part  of  the  money  came  their  way. 


THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  95 

Jesus  was  not  content  with  this  terrible  exposure 
and  arraignment,  for  he  felt  that  the  whole  case  be- 
tween him  and  the  Pharisees  was  summed  up  in 
this  motto,  a  spiritual  religion  versus  ceremonialism. 
He  called  the  multitudes  to  him  and  warned  them 
specifically  on  the  point.  It  was  not  external  ob- 
servance that  made  a  man  good  or  bad,  but  the  state 
of  the  heart.  Jesus  here  laid  the  axe  at  the  root  of 
the  tree  of  the  current  Judaism.  It  was  a  conflict, 
in  a  word,  between  spiritual  truth  and  mere  tra- 
ditionalism. So  strongly  had  Jesus  spoken  that  the 
disciples  grew  uneasy.  In  the  house  they  ventured 
to  ask  Christ  if  he  had  not  noticed  that  the  Phari- 
sees were  made  to  stumble  at  what  he  had  said. 
They  still  cherished  a  wholesome  dread  of  the  power 
of  the  Pharisees.  They  were  afraid  that  the  Master 
had  gone  too  far.  But  Christ  had  no  notion  of  re- 
tracing his  steps  along  that  line.  He  saw  that  it 
was  impossible  for  him  to  cooperate  with  these 
sticklers  for  the  p's  and  q's  of  mere  religious  ob- 
servance to  the  neglect  of  the  spiritual  life.  "Let 
them  alone:  they  are  blind  guides."  This  is  the 
pathetic  description  of  the  Pharisees  in  the  reply 
of  Jesus.  They  pose  as  religious  lights  to  point 
others  to  the  truth,  when  they  themselves  are  blind 
and  are  merely  stumbling  around  in  the  dark. 
Luckless  travellers  are  those  who  follow  such  spir- 


96  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

itual  guides.  Peter  even  insisted  that  Christ  ex- 
plain this  parabolic  description  of  the  Pharisees, 
and  received  a  rebuke  from  Jesus  for  his  dullness  in 
not  understanding  what  he  had  said  about  the  differ- 
ence between  the  spiritual  and  the  ceremonial.  In 
plain  terms  he  tells  Peter  that  out  of  the  heart  come 
forth  all  evil  thoughts  and  deeds.  This  lesson,  so 
difficult  of  apprehension  then,  is  a  commonplace 
now  with  all  evangelical  Christians.  But  even  yet 
the  majority  of  those  who  name  the  name  of  Christ 
have  bound  themselves  to  the  externals,  to  the  ob- 
scuring or  even  the  destruction  of  the  spiritual  re- 
alities. 

Mark  adds  that  in  saying  this  Jesus  made  all 
meats  clean.  It  was,  indeed,  a  revolutionary  posi- 
tion to  take  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  average 
Jew,  not  to  say  Pharisee.  It  is,  perhaps,  not  strange 
that  the  disciples  themselves  stumbled  at  it.  It  is 
worth  noting  that  Peter  is  the  one  who  will  receive 
the  vision  on  the  housetop  of  Simon  the  tanner  when 
he  will  be  invited  to  eat  all  kinds  of  meats.  The 
stoutness  of  his  protest  then  will  show  how  far  he 
is  here  from  fully  comprehending  all  that  Jesus  had 
in  mind  when  he  spoke.  But  the  seed  has  been  sown 
that  will  bear  fruit.  However,  the  first  result  of 
this  conflict  was  to  sharpen  the  issues  between  Christ 
and  the  Pharisees.     They  have  one  more  definite 


THE  GALILEAN  CAMPAIGN  97 

ground  of  complaint  against  him.  The  struggle  for 
spiritual  religion  will  not  be  won  in  a  day,  has  not 
indeed  been  fully  won  yet  in  all  parts  of  Christen- 
dom. But  Jesus  is  clear  that  the  path  of  duty  lies 
straight  ahead.  He  has,  however,  reached  a  real 
crisis  in  his  ministry.  Evidences  multiply  that  his 
effective  work  in  Galilee  is  over.  More  and  more 
his  hopes  centre  in  the  twelve.  To  them  he  must 
devote  himself  more  exclusively  if  they  are  to  be 
qualified  to  carry  on  the  work  without  him  and  to 
meet  the  crucial  events  now  rapidly  coming  on. 
Are  they  now  ready  for  the  gloom  of  his  death  ?  It 
is  less  than  a  year  to  that  awful  event. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE 

"But  who  say  ye  that  I  am?"  (Matt.  16  :  15). 

1.  The  Reasons  for  Such  Training  Are  Obvious. — It 
is  now  less  than  a  year  till  the  end  will  come.  For 
nearly  six  months  Jesus  will  devote  himself  chiefly 
to  the  chosen  band  of  men  whom  he  has  gathered 
around  him.  If  these  men  come  to  understand  him 
it  will  not  matter  so  greatly  about  the  rest.  As  yet 
they  do  not  fully  appreciate  either  the  Messiah  or 
his  message.  It  is  supremely  difficult  for  one  to  rise 
above  his  environment.  One's  standpoint  has  much 
to  do  with  what  he  sees.  One  of  the  greatest  proofs 
that  Jesus  is  more  than  man  is  just  this,  that  in  an 
environment  of  cold  ceremonialism  and  external 
punctiliousness  he  came*  with  abundant  life  and 
spiritual  power.  So  far  Jesus  has  sought  to  teach 
mainly  the  great  ideas  concerning  the  Kingdom. 
He  had  indeed,  in  a  vital  way,  outlined  the  theology 
of  the  Kingdom.  The  disciples  did  not  now  under- 
stand all  that  they  had  heard,  nor  would  they  till 
later.  But  meanwhile  it  was  necessary  that  they 
should  learn  more  of  the  Messiah  himself.     Hence- 


THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE     99 

forth  Jesus  will  speak  more  concerning  the  King 
and  less  concerning  the  Kingdom.  This  is  not  a 
wrong  historical  order,  but  the  right  one.  The 
early  Messianic  disclosures  were  personal  and  they 
largely  ceased  for  obvious  reasons.  On  the  broad 
foundation  of  the  Kingdom  teaching  Jesus  had  built, 
till  now  they  ought  to  be  able,  however  far  the  people 
fell  short,  to  rise  to  the  true  idea  of  the  Messiah. 
The  disciples  had  to  expand  before  he  could  tell 
more.  But  now  he  must  tell  more.  The  time  had 
come  when  he  could  not  wait  longer.  The  shadow 
of  the  cross  was  coming  rapidly  towards  him.  The 
total  eclipse  would  find  the  twelve  wholly  unpre- 
pared for  the  catastrophe.  It  is  not  certain  that 
even  now  the  disciples  are  capable  of  appreciating 
all  that  Jesus  has  to  say  about  himself  and  his  mission. 
They  have  shown  signs  of  development  of  late  which 
are  encouraging.  At  any  rate  they  must  be  told  the 
truth. 

Jesus  sees  that  it  will  be  difficult  to  devote  himself 
so  exclusively  to  the  disciples  in  Capernaum  or  in 
Galilee.  The  distractions  are  too  many  and  the 
interruptions  too  frequent  in  the  midst  of  the  excited 
multitudes.  Besides  the  tension  is  acute  now  in 
Capernaum  since  the  crisis  in  the  synagogue.  The 
issue  will  be  sharper  and  the  lines  more  tightly 
drawn  between  him  and  the  Pharisees.     There  is 


100  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

danger  of  a  fanatical  outburst  on  the  part  of  his  fol- 
lowers, as  was  shown  after  the  feeding  of  the  five 
thousand.  Besides,  Herod  himself  had  grown 
jealous  and  uneasy  and  was  likely  to  cause  trouble. 
So  Jesus  spends  the  hot  summer  away  from  Galilee, 
chiefly  in  the  mountain  districts.  He  has  a  summer 
school  in  theology.  What  a  joy  to  have  been  one 
of  that  little  company.  They  appear  in  several 
places  and  are  not  entirely  alone  even  in  the  heathen 
regions.  But,  on  the  whole,  it  is  a  summer  of 
freedom  from  disturbance  and  of  intimate  fellowship. 
Jesus  unburdens  his  heart  to  the  men  of  his  choice 
as  far  as  they  will  allow  him. 

2.  The  Trip  to  Phoenicia. — The  work  of  Jesus 
was  limited  mainly  to  the  Jews  for  clear  reasons. 
They  were  the  chosen  people,  the  people  of  promise. 
They  must  have  the  first  chance.  To  work  much 
in  Samaria  or  in  Phoenicia  would  prejudice  the  Jews 
generally  against  the  gospel.  Hence  Jesus  spent 
most  of  his  ministry  in  Jewish  territory.  Now  he 
is  on  heathen  ground  and  will  be  for  most  of  the 
summer,  but  his  work  is  chiefly  with  the  disciples. 

Jesus  is  the  Saviour  of  the  world  as  the  Samaritans 
saw  and  as  he  himself  accented,  but  he  was  to  begin 
with  the  Jew.  To  the  Jew  first  and  then  to  the 
Gentile.  All  this  must  be  borne  in  mind  and  yet 
Jesus  did  mingle  with  the  Gentiles  and  was  destined 


THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE    101 

by  his  gospel  of  grace  and  liberty  to  break  down  the 
middle  wall  of  partition  between  Jew  and  Gentile, 
as  he  had  already  indicated  in  his  teaching  concern- 
ing eating  with  unwashed  hands.  He  even  seems 
to  have  entered  a  Gentile  house  (Mark  7  :  24) 
though  he  would  have  no  man  know  it.  However, 
his  seclusion  seems  due  to  a  desire  for  quiet  from 
the  crowds  rather  than  to  any  sense  of  ceremonial 
defilement  such  as  Peter  felt  in  the  house  of  Cor- 
nelius. 

The  reluctance  of  Jesus  to  heal  the  daughter  of 
the  Syrophcenician  woman  is  not  hard  to  understand 
in  the  light  of  what  has  just  been  said.  It  was  not 
hardness  of  heart  on  the  part  of  Christ.  It  is  to  be 
noticed  that  Jesus  did  not  abruptly  send  her  away 
as  the  disciples  suggested.  He  heard  her  plea, 
though  he  made  it  plain  that  his  mission  was  first  to 
the  lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel.  He  tested  the 
woman  and  brought  out  the  greatness  of  her  faith. 
He  did  grant  her  request,  a  thing  that  the  disciples 
would  not  have  done.  The  disciple  is  often  nar- 
rower than  his  master.  The  cleverness  of  this 
woman  is  as  striking  as  her  faith.  "  Even  the  little 
dogs  (fcvvdpia)  eat  of  the  crumbs  which  fall  from 
their  master's  table."  She  deserved  a  hearing  for 
that  bright  turn  to  the  Master's  protest.  Jesus  did 
not  long  tarry  here,  but  went  on  from  Tyre  up 


102  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

north  to  Sidon,  though  we  have  no  further  details 
of  this  journey.  One  would  infer  that  the  work 
done  was  less  than  in  Galilee,  though  it  is  to  be  re- 
called that  when  Jesus  preached  the  Sermon  on 
the  Mount  there  were  people  present  from  the 
seacoast  of  Tyre  and  Sidon.  Hence  Jesus  was  not 
an  entire  stranger  to  the  Phoenicians  and  many 
more  had  heard  of  the  wonderful  Galilean  Rabbi. 
3.  In  Decapolis. — They  kept  to  the  mountains 
after  leaving  Sidon.  Mark  briefly  sketches  the 
journey  as  from  Sidon  through  the  borders  of  De- 
capolis to  the  seacoast  of  Galilee.  This  would  mean 
probably  a  journey  east  from  Sidon,  then  south  and 
to  the  east  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee  into  the  high  cliffs 
to  the  southeast.  This  is  still  heathen  territory. 
The  Decapolis  was  a  league  of  Greek  cities  which 
were  practically  entirely  Hellenized  after  Alex- 
ander's conquest.  The  teaching  of  Jesus  in  this 
region  as  well  as  in  Phoenicia  shows  that  he  used 
Greek  when  necessary.  The  people  here  "were 
astonished  beyond  measure"  at  the  healing  of  the 
deaf  and  dumb  man,  and  they  wondered  as  they  saw 
the  dumb  speaking,  the  maimed  whole,  and  the 
lame  walking,  and  the  blind  seeing:  and  they  glori- 
fied the  God  of  Israel.  As  elsewhere,  therefore, 
so  here  also  the  work  of  Jesus  made  a  marvellous 
impression.     In  the  modern  sense  of  the  term  Jesus 


THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE    103 

was  here  a  foreign  missionary.  These  Greeks 
glorified  "The  God  of  Israel."  It  was  to  the  north 
of  this  section  a  little  that  Jesus  had  come  when  he 
healed  the  wild  demoniac  with  a  legion  of  demons. 
As  a  result  of  that  excitement,  though  no  Pharisees 
are  here,  Jesus  charges  them  all  not  to  tell  about 
the  healing  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  man.  "But  the 
more  he  charged  them,  so  much  the  more  a  great 
deal  they  published  it"  (Mark  7  :  36). 

There  was  here  also  a  feeding  of  four  thousand 
similar  to  that  of  the  five  thousand  at  Bethsaida 
Julias.  Some  critics  cannot  see  how  such  a  thing 
could  have  happened  twice,  although  Mark  and 
Matthew  mention  in  detail  both  incidents  and  each 
records  that  Jesus  referred  to  both  incidents  as  sep- 
arate. Other  distinctions,  like  the  name  of  the 
baskets  on  the  two  occasions,  are  preserved  also. 
One  can  be  too  particular  as  well  as  too  credulous. 
Nature  works  in  great  variety,  but  with  marvellous 
similarity  also.  It  is  remarkable  how  in  each  great 
region  where  Jesus  labored  similar  events  take 
place,  as  in  Judea,  Galilee,  Perea,  and  to  a  less  ex- 
tent in  Samaria,  Phoenicia,  Decapolis,  and  the 
region  of  Caesarea  Philippi.  People  are  very  much 
alike  after  all.  Christ  delivers  the  same  teachings 
in  these  regions  with  modifications  here  and  there, 
and  he  works  the  same  kind  of  cures.     The  people 


104  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

are  astonished  everywhere.  The  slowness  of  the 
disciples  to  obey  the  Master  in  the  case  of  the  four 
thousand  after  their  experience  with  the  five  thousand 
is  not  to  be  wondered  at  too  greatly.  The  dullness 
and  forgetfulness  of  the  disciples  concerning  these 
two  incidents  were  pointedly  condemned  by  Jesus. 
Besides  their  slowness  here  is  not  an  isolated  instance, 
but  is  a  characteristic  of  their  whole  experience  be- 
fore the  coming  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  surround- 
ings in  the  case  of  the  four  thousand  are  quite  differ- 
ent and  the  points  of  likeness  are  such  as  belong  to 
the  nature  of  the  case. 

4.  A  Brief  Visit  to  Galilee. — One  day  Jesus  went 
with  the  disciples  over  to  the  other  side  into  Galilee. 
We  do  not  know  exactly  where  the  parts  of  Dalmanu- 
tha  or  Magadan  were,  except  that  it  was  on  the 
western  side,  possibly  down  towards  Tiberias.  He 
has  been  absent  from  Galilee  for  some  time  now. 
How  will  he  be  received  ?  Instantly,  the  ubiquitous 
Pharisees  came  forth  and  began  to  question  him, 
as  if  they  had  missed  him  and  were  so  glad  to  see 
him  back.  The  Sadducees  are  with  the  Pharisees, 
a  strange  combination.  The  Herodians  had  al- 
ready taken  sides  with  the  Pharisees  against  Jesus 
and  now  the  Sadducees  do  so.  Christ  had  united 
all  three  parties  on  one  point  at  any  rate,  hostility 
to  himself.     This  is  the  first  time  that  the  Sad- 


THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE    105 

ducees  are  mentioned  in  the  Gospels  and  the  only 
one  till  the  Passion  Week.  On  the  last  day  of  Christ's 
ministry  in  the  temple  these  three  parties  will  appear 
together  against  Jesus.  Here  they  have  nothing  new 
to  say.  They  ask  for  a  sign  from  heaven  in  proof 
of  his  claims  as  the  Pharisees  had  done  before. 

Jesus  "sighed  deeply  in  his  spirit."  So  this  is  his 
reception  in  Galilee!  It  is  as  hopeless  as  ever,  in 
fact  more  so.  Jesus  answered  them  with  reproach 
and  denial.  They  could  tell  the  weather,  the  face 
of  the  heaven,  but  not  the  signs  of  the  times.  They 
could  not  tell  a  sign  from  heaven  if  they  saw  one. 
He  repeats  this  answer  to  the  same  demand  made  in 
Capernaum.  He  will  give  them  the  sign  of  Jonah. 
This  enigmatic  allusion  perhaps  only  puzzled  them. 
It  was  useless  to  explain.  So  Jesus  abruptly  left 
them  and  Galilee.  He  took  boat  with  the  dis- 
ciples and  turned  up  towards  Bethsaida  Julias  on  the 
northeastern  shore. 

On  the  way  he  pointedly  warned  the  disciples 
against  the  leaven  of  the  Pharisees,  the  Sadducees, 
and  Herod.  He  had  just  been  in  the  land  of  Herod 
and  had  been  attacked  by  the  Pharisees  and 
the  Sadducees.  The  disciples  are  hopelessly  at  sea 
with  this  simple  simile  and  rather  jejunely  reply, 
"We  have  no  bread!"  (Mark  8:16).  They  did 
not  have  any  kind  of  bread  and  so  Jesus  need  not 


106  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

caution  them  against  the  particular  brand  of  the 
Pharisees,  Sadducees,  and  Herod!  No  wonder 
Jesus  was  led  to  rebuke  them  sharply.  He  asked  if 
they  had  a  mind,  if  they  had  eyes,  if  they  had  ears. 
Their  dullness  seemed  incomprehensible.  Perhaps 
every  teacher  has  moments  of  sympathy  with  this 
mood  of  Jesus  here.  Christ  patiently  explained 
about  the  five  thousand  and  the  four  thousand  and 
then  said  that  by  leaven  he  meant  teaching.  Did 
they  now  understand?  They  saw  dimly  like  the 
poor  blind  man  who  at  first  saw  men  as  trees  walking. 

5.  The  Examination  of  the  Twelve. — It  was  time 
for  examination.  They  had  now  had  a  special  sum- 
mer course  with  Jesus  in  addition  to  all  the  rest.  So 
he  took  the  disciples  up  to  the  slopes  of  Hermon 
in  the  region  of  Csesarea  Philippi.  He  still  kept 
away  from  Galilee.  Philip  was  a  milder  ruler  and 
a  better  man  than  Herod  Antipas.  He  had  tried 
Galilee  (Bethsaida,  Chorazin,  Capernaum,  and  all 
the  rest)  and  it  had  been  found  wanting.  But  after 
all  it  mattered  little  what  Galilee  thought  of  him, 
provided  these  men  were  clear  and  loyal.  They  had 
been  true  that  day  in  Capernaum,  but  a  deeper 
probing  was  necessary.  They  are  here  by  themselves 
and  Jesus  had  been  praying  alone. 

So  on  the  way  he  took  it  up  with  them.  He  first 
asked  what  men  thought  of  him  or  said  he  was. 


THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE    107 

He  knew  that  well  enough  already,  but  it  served  as  a 
background  for  their  own  attitude.  It  was  a  crucial 
moment  when  Jesus  abruptly  asked:  "But  who  say 
ye  that  I  am?"  (Matt.  16  :  15).  They  had  taken 
him  as  the  Messiah  at  the  start,  it  is  true,  but  they 
knew  little  about  him  then.  They  had  their  own 
preconceived  ideas  as  to  what  the  Messiah  would  be 
like.  He  had  not  come  up  to  that.  The  discovery 
of  that  fact  had  sent  the  Galilean  populace  away  in 
disgust.  The  twelve  had  been  loyal.  He  had  told 
them  much  more  about  himself.  What  do  they 
think  now  after  they  know  so  much  of  the  truth 
about  him  ?  Do  they  still  think  him  to  be  the  Mes- 
siah, the  Son  of  God  ?  Or  have  they  felt  the  force 
of  uncertain  popular  opinion  which  is  now  much 
divided?  Few  among  the  people  now  hold  him  to 
be  the  Messiah,  though  many  consider  him  John  the 
Baptist  come  to  life  or  Elijah  or  Jeremiah  or  one  of 
the  prophets. 

It  was  Peter  who  found  his  tongue  first  and  spoke 
as  he  had  done  that  day  in  the  synagogue  in  Caper- 
naum. He  rose  to  the  dignity  of  the  occasion.  Jesus 
had  said  that  Simon  would  be  a  Rock.  "Thou  art 
the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God  "  (Matt.  16  :  16). 
They  are  noble  words  and  rightly  expressed  his  con- 
viction and  that  of  the  rest.  They  did  not  indeed 
fully  understand  all  that  these  words  signified,  but 


108  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

they  could  joyfully  use  them  as  their  creed  about 
Jesus.  The  heart  of  Jesus  was  made  glad  by  these 
words  and  he  made  no  effort  to  conceal  the  fact. 
Now  Simon  was  worthy  his  name.  On  this  truth, 
trust  in  Jesus  as  the  Son  of  God,  rested  the  Kingdom 
of  God,  his  glorious  church.  What  Peter  has  done, 
all  will  do  who  come  into  the  Kingdom.  They  will 
take  Jesus  as  the  Son  of  God  and  Saviour.  In  this 
clear  confession  Jesus  sees  the  sure  promise  of  vic- 
tory. Satan  had  often  tried  to  overturn  him,  but 
it  is  now  clear  that  these  men  will  be  true  and  will 
carry  on  the  work  of  the  Kingdom.  The  gates  of 
Hades  will  not  be  able  to  prevail  against  the  Church 
or  Kingdom  of  Christ.  Peter  and  all  the  rest,  all 
teachers  of  Christ,  have  the  keys  of  the  Kingdom, 
all  who  proclaim  life  to  men  on  these  terms.  God 
will  stand  by  the  acceptance  or  rejection  of  Christ 
as  His  Son. 

Not  yet  does  Jesus  wish  them  to  tell  others  what 
is  a  great  secret.  It  would  set  the  land  ablaze  if 
the  great  truth  came  to  be  preached  as  yet.  There 
is  much  more  that  they  themselves  need  to  know. 
They  have  made  good  progress  on  this  point.  Will 
they  be  true  when  they  learn  this  "more"?  When 
they  learn  of  his  death,  what  will  they  do?  So  a 
shadow  comes  over  the  hour  of  joy,  but  Christ  does 
not  doubt  the  final  outcome.     The  present  situation 


THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE    109 

has  vindicated  what  Christ  said.  Look  at  the  King- 
dom of  God  to-day  in  the  world. 

6.  The  New  Great  Lesson. — It  seemed  like  a 
mockery  of  all  their  hopes  that  now  just  as  they 
had  made  afresh  the  great  confession,  Jesus  should 
announce  his  death.  There  was  no  mistaking  his 
words.  He  had  indeed  heretofore  used  symbolic 
language  that  pointed  to  his  death,  but  it  was  all  so 
veiled  that  little  impression  was  made.  It  is  in  fact 
a  distinct  epoch  in  the  career  of  Jesus,  and  Matthew 
says  that  "from  that  time  began  Jesus  to  shew" 
(Matt.  16  :  21)  that  he  must  be  killed  at  Jerusalem. 
Observe  "must"  and  "at  Jerusalem"  and  "at  the 
hands  of  the  chief  priests  and  scribes."  So  he  ex- 
pects the  Sadducees  and  Pharisees  to  kill  him  after 
all.  All  this  was  not  only  disconcerting  to  the  dis- 
ciples; it  was  absolutely  depressing.  It  is  true  that 
Jesus  said  also  that  he  would  rise  on  the  third  day, 
but  this  ray  of  hope  was  always  obscured  by  the 
dreadful  darkness  of  his  death.  That  overshadowed 
all  else.  The  eclipse  was  coming  and  they  were  in 
the  penumbra.  Jesus  spoke  of  his  death  "  openly  " 
and  without  parable. 

Peter  felt  so  strongly  this  chilling  of  their  Messianic 
hopes  that  he  even  took  Jesus  aside  and  dared  rebuke 
him  for  talking  so.  Of  course  Peter  knew  more  of 
what  Jesus  ought  to  do  than  Jesus  himself!    This 


110  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

audacity  was  grounded  in  solicitude  to  be  sure,  but 
none  the  less  it  was  inexcusable.  Besides,  he  was 
grossly  in  the  wrong.  He  did  not  understand  the 
philosophy  of  the  Messianic  Kingdom.  He  did  not 
know  that  self-sacrifice  was  the  law  of  life,  that  one 
who  tries  to  save  his  life  shall  lose  it,  that  every  man 
must  take  up  his  own  cross  if  he  means  to  follow 
Jesus.  Already  his  cross  is  before  the  eye  of  Christ, 
as  it  was  a  familiar  figure  to  all  the  Jews  in  Roman 
times. 

All  this  goes  to  explain  the  sharpness  of  the  rebuke 
that  Jesus  administered  to  Peter  for  his  presump- 
tion. "  Get  thee  behind  me,  Satan  "  (Matt.  16  :  23). 
It  was  a  hard  name,  to  call  a  disciple  Satan,  and 
especially  Peter  who  had  so  recently  been  the  spokes- 
man in  calling  Jesus  the  Son  of  God.  He  is  acting 
the  part  of  Satan  now  as  he  was  like  a  rock  then. 
"Thou  art  a  stumbling  block  to  me."  That  was 
the  point.  Peter  was  tempting  Jesus  to  do  the 
very  thing  that  the  devil  had  urged.  The  most 
prominent  of  the  disciples  was  actually  persuading 
him  not  to  die  for  the  sins  of  men!  It  was  a  strange 
coalition,  Peter  and  Satan!  The  devil  had  used 
Peter  once  and  he  will  try  again.  He  has  discovered 
a  way  to  handle  the  very  foremost  of  the  disciples. 
If  he  could  only  win  him  wholly!  Peter  was  mind- 
ing the  things  of  men,  not  the  things  of  God.     Un- 


THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE    1 1 1 

consciously  he  had  taken  the  devil's  point  of  view 
about  the  career  of  Jesus.  It  was  a  shock  to  Christ 
to  have  it  come  from  Peter.  It  was  a  rude  awaken- 
ing to  Peter,  this  agony  of  Jesus,  but  a  necessary  one. 
It  was  now  clear  that  the  disciples  were  far  from 
being  ready  for  the  great  catastrophe.  Can  they 
be  made  ready  in  time?  How  can  they  reconcile 
his  Messiahship  with  his  death  ?  That  was  a  theo- 
logical knot  difficult  of  solution. 

7.  Heavenly  Light  on  the  Subject. — From  the 
human  point  of  view  Jesus  was  absolutely  without 
sympathy  in  the  deepest  things  of  his  life.  The 
circle  had  once  widened,  but  now  it  was  very  narrow, 
and  almost  a  point.  The  apostles  were  indeed 
faithful  to  him,  but  they  could  not  comprehend  the 
spiritual  nature  of  his  mission  nor  the  necessity  and 
significance  of  his  death.  They  were  in  poor  plight 
to  be  left  alone  in  a  world  that  understood  him  still 
less.  How  could  they  pass  through  the  dark  hour 
of  his  death  ?  One  can  little  imagine  the  loneliness 
of  Jesus  at  this  time.  The  Father  was  his  only 
sympathizer.  About  a  week  after  Peter's  rebuke 
Jesus  went  up  into  a  mountain  one  night  to  pray. 
He  took  with  him  Peter,  James,  and  John,  the  inner 
circle  within  the  twelve.  Jesus  cherished  no  hard 
feeling  toward  Peter.  After  all,  did  the  rest  know 
any  more?    There  is  no  indication  that  Jesus  was 


112  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

expecting  what  came,  though,  of  course,  that  is 
possible.  Certainly  the  three  disciples  were  not. 
In  fact,  while  Jesus  was  praying  they  went  to  sleep, 
or  were  on  the  point  of  sleeping  at  any  rate.  If  the 
spirit  was  willing,  the  flesh  was  very  weak  as  it  was 
in  the  Garden  of  Gethsemane.  The  transfigura- 
tion of  Jesus  took  place  as  he  prayed.  Was  it  the 
glory  brought  from  heaven  by  Moses  and  Elijah? 
Or  was  it  the  restoration  of  Jesus  to  his  pre-incar- 
nate  state  as  he  talked  with  these  heavenly  visitors  ? 
The  miracle  consists  not  in  the  glory,  but  in  the 
presence  of  Moses  and  Elijah.  If  genuine,  as  I  be- 
lieve, we  have  full  proof  of  life  beyond  the  grave, 
and  of  heavenly  recognition. 

There  was  something  unusual  in  the  death  of  both 
Moses  and  Elijah.  God  buried  Moses  and  took 
Elijah  up  in  a  chariot  of  fire.  But  Moses  stood  for 
the  law  and  Elijah  for  prophecy.  Both  law  and 
prophecy  have  representatives  to  speak  with  Jesus 
who  is  the  gospel  of  grace.  They  spoke  of  the  de- 
cease of  Jesus,  of  his  exodus  from  earth.  They  at 
least  understood,  and  Christ's  heart  was  com- 
forted at  this  dread  hour.  No  doubt  the  Father 
graciously  sent  Moses  and  Elijah  to  console  the 
spirit  of  Christ  in  this  time  of  darkness.  In  the 
strength  of  this  meat  he  could  go  on  steadily  to 
the  cross.     We  do  not  know  the  words  that  were 


THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE    113 

said,  but  they  were  words  of  comfort  beyond  a 
doubt. 

It  would  seem  that  another  object  in  view  was  to 
help  these  three  disciples  to  look  at  the  death  of 
Christ  from  the  standpoint  of  heaven  rather  than 
from  that  of  the  world  or  Satan.  A  glimpse  of  the 
larger  vision  was  offered  them  here,  but  they  were 
so  heavy  with  sleep  that  Peter  blundered  again.  He 
did  indeed  like  the  glory  all  about  him,  so  much  so 
that  he  wished  to  stay  there  always.  Luke  says 
(9  :  33)  that  he  did  not  know  what  he  was  saying 
when  he  suggested  three  tabernacles,  but  though 
dazed  he  was  talking.  They  were  afraid  when  they 
saw  the  cloud  overshadow  and  envelop  them  and 
heard  the  voice  out  of  the  cloud.  The  voice  not 
only  identified  Jesus  as  the  Son  of  God,  but  ex- 
horted that  the  disciples  hear  him,  hear  him  es- 
pecially in  the  matter  of  his  death. 

But  it  was  soon  over,  and  with  Jesus  they  went 
down  the  mountain.  Christ  broke  the  silence  by 
telling  them  not  to  speak  of  what  they  had  seen  and 
heard  till  the  Son  of  man  should  rise  from  the  dead. 
Then  they  might  tell  for  the  consolation  of  others. 
Meanwhile  it  was  to  be  for  their  own  strength.  But 
over  again  they  missed  the  point  and  went  to  ques- 
tioning among  themselves  as  to  what  the  rising  from 
the  dead  should  mean.     They  did  notice  now  his 


114  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

allusion  to  the  resurrection.  But  if  he  referred  to 
the  resurrection  at  the  end  of  the  world,  that  was  a 
long  way  off.  So  they  relapsed  into  confusion  again. 
They  did  ask  Christ  about  the  coming  of  Elijah,  but 
not  about  the  real  problem  in  their  heart. 

At  the  bottom  of  the  mountain  they  found  the  rest 
of  the  disciples  harried  by  the  scribes  because  they 
had  failed  to  heal  a  demoniac  boy.  When  Jesus  suc- 
ceeded they  learned  that  their  own  failure  was  due 
to  lack  of  prayer. 

8.  Back  in  Galilee  and  Fresh  Teaching  about  His 
Death. — Jesus  wishes  no  one  to  know  that  he  is  in 
Galilee  now  (Mark  9  :  30).  His  real  work  in  Gali- 
lee is  over.  He  attempts  again  to  explain  about  his 
death  and  resurrection  "Let  these  words  sink  into 
your  ears!"  (Luke  9  :  44).  They  did  get  in,  but 
"They  understood  not."  It  seemed  concealed  from 
them  somehow  and  they  were  afraid  to  ask  further, 
though  they  were  exceeding  sorry.  It  was  really 
hopeless  and  the  hour  was  drawing  nigh.  The 
Galileans  did  find  out  that  Jesus  had  returned,  at 
least  the  tax-collector  did,  for  the  demand  was  made 
that  he  pay  the  half -shekel  for  the  temple-tax. 
Jesus  paid  the  tax  for  himself  and  Peter,  though  in  a 
rather  unusual  way. 

9.  Rivalry  among  the  Twelve. — Surely  the  cup  of 
Jesus  was  full  enough  without  this.     And  yet,  after 


THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE    115 

all  the  careful  teaching  about  his  death  and  resur- 
rection they  go  on  parcelling  out  the  chief  places  in 
an  earthly  kingdom  among  themselves.  They  get 
into  a  quarrel  on  the  great  ecclesiastical  question  as 
to  which  of  them  is  greatest  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven! 
Ecclesiastical  jealousy  is  rife,  therefore,  right  among 
the  bosom  friends  of  Christ  and  in  his  very  presence. 
When  he  asked  them  what  they  were  disputing  about, 
they  would  not  say.  They  had  already  asked  him 
who  was  the  greatest  in  the  Kingdom.  They  did 
not  wish  him  to  know  of  their  envy.  So  Jesus  called 
a  little  child.  Was  it  Peter's  child?  This  little 
child  should  teach  them.  They  had  missed  it  all 
again  and  did  not  know  the  law  of  service  that  the 
least  was  the  greatest,  the  one  who  humbled  himself 
most  to  serve. 

This  is  a  pathetic  incident,  but  the  saddest  part 
of  it  is  that  the  lesson  was  not  learned  then  or  now. 
Soon  John,  the  beloved  John,  showed  a  spirit  of 
narrow  intolerance  that  caused  a  rebuke  from 
Jesus.  John  had  seen  a  man  casting  out  demons 
in  the  name  of  Christ.  He  actually  cast  them  out, 
too!  What  was  his  offence?  He  did  "not  follow 
us!"  That  was  all.  John  expected  to  be  pro- 
moted for  extra  zeal  in  orthodoxy!  Here  we  have 
a  needed  lesson  in  tolerance  about  methods  of  work 
for  Christ.     How  little  John  here  understood  the 


116  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

spirit  of  Jesus.  But  Christ  was  patient  with  the 
narrowness  of  John  as  he  is  to-day  with  ours.  What 
poor  earthen  vessels  we  are  after  all,  with  our  bick- 
erings, jealousies  and  prejudices.  The  wonder  is 
that  Jesus  can  use  any  of  us  in  his  service.  We 
preach  the  spirit  of  service  for  other  people  and 
practice  too  often  self-aggrandizement  and  self- 
seeking.  It  was  pitiable  then  and  it  is  lamentable 
now. 

Christ  cares  for  his  little  ones,  those  who  are  weak 
and  tender  in  the  faith.  It  is  easy  to  be  heedless 
and  reckless  of  consequences  to  those  who  love  Jesus. 
Sometimes  the  millstone  is  hung  around  the  neck  of 
those  who  wrong  the  people  of  God.  It  is  not  God's 
will  that  one  of  those  little  ones  perish. 

The  spirit  of  forgiveness  of  injury  is  in  opposi- 
tion to  that  of  self-aggrandizement.  Jesus  does  not 
mean  that  a  brother  shall  injure  as  a  matter  of  policy 
and  then  turn  around  and  demand  that  we  forgive 
him.  That  is  rather  a  cold-blooded  proceeding. 
But  he  does  mean  that  genuine  repentance  shall  be 
followed  by  forgiveness.  And  real  forgiveness  is 
"from  your  hearts."  The  eternal  need  of  this  spirit 
is  accented  in  almost  every  church  in  the  land. 

There  are  some  who  are  very  officious  in  their 
service  of  Christ,  not  to  say  flippant.  Jesus  discour- 
ages such  loud  followers  and  reminds  them  of  the 


THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE    117 

privations  ahead  of  them.  At  this  particular  time 
Jesus  had  not  where  to  lay  his  head.  He  was  an 
outcast  in  the  land  of  his  people.  On  the  other 
hand,  if  one  wishes  to  follow  Christ,  he  will  not  turn 
back  after  having  put  his  hand  to  the  plough.  He 
will  not  turn  back  even  to  stay  with  a  father  till  he 
die.  This  is  what  the  expression  "  Bury  my  father" 
means.  That  was  a  pious  duty,  but  the  father 
might  live  many  years  and  service  for  God  was  im- 
perative. 

10.  Light  Advice  from  the  Brothers  of  Jesus. — 
Was  Jesus  going  to  the  feast  of  tabernacles  ?  It  was 
near  that  time  now,  the  last  of  September.  It  had 
apparently  been  a  year  and  a  half  since  Christ  had 
been  in  Jerusalem.  To  go  now  offered  little  of  hope. 
The  brothers  of  Jesus  had  noticed  his  long  absence 
from  Jerusalem  at  the  public  festivals.  They  prob- 
aoly  knew  also  about  his  long  and  recent  absence  from 
Galilee.  So  they  come  and  taunt  him  with  being  a 
secret  Messiah  as  if  he  were  rather  ashamed  of  it. 
They  tell  him  to  go  up  to  Jerusalem  and  to  do  his 
work  "openly."  There  are  always  plenty  of  people 
who  know  how  to  manage  our  business  better  than 
we  do  ourselves,  especially  if  they  dislike  us  a  bit. 
It  is  amazing  how  much  wisdom  is  misapplied.  It 
looks  sometimes  as  if  all  of  us  have  the  wrong  task, 
to  judge  by  the  advice  so  freely  and  generously 


118  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

given.  But  Jesus  asserts  his  independence.  He 
will  go  to  Jerusalem  when  he  pleases  and  conduct  the 
affairs  of  the  Kingdom  as  seems  good  to  him.  He 
went  up  privately  and  not  publicly,  as  they  had  sug- 
gested, and  at  his  own  time. 

11.  Facing  Jerusalem. — So  he  was  going  to  Jeru- 
salem again.  It  is  a  significant  event  in  his  career. 
He  has  returned  from  his  seclusion,  but  not  to  make 
new  campaigns  in  Galilee.  He  has  higher  ends 
than  that.  He  will  go  to  Jerusalem  and  bring 
matters  to  a  focus  there.  When  that  is  done,  the 
end  will  not  be  far  off.  Will  he  win  Jerusalem? 
He  goes  through  Samaria  again  and  excites  the 
hatred  of  the  Samaritans  because  his  face  was  set 
towards  Jerusalem.  When  he  went  north  it  was 
all  right. 

Once  more  James  and  John  show  a  spirit  of  bitter- 
ness and  lack  of  self-control  as  they  wish  to  call  down 
fire  on  a  Samaritan  village.  They  did  not  know 
what  spirit  they  were  of,  and  certainly  they  missed 
utterly  the  spirit  of  Christ.  Is  it  with  a  heavy  heart 
that  Jesus  goes  on  to  the  storm-centre  of  militant 
and  hardened  Judaism?  They  will  not  have  him 
in  Galilee  and  he  had  already  been  rejected  in  Jeru- 
salem. Heretofore  Christ  had  been  on  the  defensive 
as  to  his  enemies  in  the  Holy  City  and  had  kept 
aloof  from  them  not  only  in  Jerusalem,  but  lately 


THE  SPECIAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  TWELVE    119 

in  Galilee  also.  But  now  the  Master  boldly  appears 
in  Jerusalem,  not  on  the  defensive  entirely.  His 
appearance  then  is  in  the  nature  of  an  attack  upon 
the  enemy's  country.  Will  it  succeed?  Suppose 
Jesus  should  win  Jerusalem  to  his  cause.  Is  it 
worth  trying? 


CHAPTER  VI 
THE  ATTACK  UPON  JERUSALEM 

"O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,  which  killeth  the 
prophets  and  stoneth  them  that  are  sent  unto 
her"  (Luke  13:34). 

Jesus  will  now  make  a  series  of  attacks  upon  Jeru- 
salem itself.  He  had  come  here  in  the  beginning; 
he  will  finish  his  career  here.  He  will  not,  indeed, 
be  able  to  stay  in  Jerusalem  continuously,  else  the 
end  would  come  at  once.  But  there  is  nowhere  in 
Palestine  where  Jesus  can  gain  a  permanent  foot- 
hold so  long  as  the  city  of  Jerusalem  is  wholly  in  the 
hands  of  his  enemies.  They  are  intrenched  behind 
ages  of  tradition  and  walls  of  prejudice  and  pride. 
Somehow  the  idea  had  gotten  out  that  Jesus  might 
come  to  the  feast  of  the  tabernacles  this  time,  possibly 
from  his  brothers,  possibly  from  the  Galilean  multi- 
tudes. But  in  the  opening  days  of  the  feast  he  is  not 
present.  All  at  once  Jesus  is  the  chief  topic  of  con- 
versation. Will  he  come?  Where  is  he?  What 
do  you  think  of  him  anyhow  ?  The  Galilean  multi- 
tudes are  divided  over  him.  They  had  once  been 
almost  unanimously  on  his  side,  but  now  it  is  not  so. 
120 


THE  ATTACK  UPON   JERUSALEM         121 

In  the  murmuring  like  that  in  the  synagogue  at 
Capernaum,  some  take  up  for  him  and  say:  "He  is 
a  good  man" — this  at  any  rate,  whether  he  is  the 
Messiah  or  not.  But  others  stoutly  protest :  "  Nay, 
but  he  leads  the  multitude  astray."  This  contro- 
versy was  largely  in  an  undertone  because  all  knew 
that  the  Jews  of  Jerusalem  hated  Jesus.  No  one 
from  Galilee  wished  to  be  mixed  up  in  the  affair. 
But  one  day  in  the  midst  of  the  discussion  Jesus 
settled  all  speculation  on  this  point  by  appearing  in 
the  temple  and  teaching. 

1.  The  Jerusalem  Conspirators  Outwitted  at  Home. 
— There  he  is!  What  will  his  enemies  do?  This 
was  their  opportunity. 

They  fail  to  arrest  Jesus  at  the  feast.  The  first 
effect  of  his  teaching  is  the  astonishment  of  the  hos- 
tile Jews  that  he  can  talk  so  well  since  he  did  not  at- 
tend their  rabbinical  seminary  in  Jerusalem.  He 
had  attended  God's  school,  if  they  but  knew  it.  But 
that  alternative  they  would  not  admit.  Jesus  cut 
matters  short  by  boldly  charging  them  with  wishing 
to  kill  him.  They  are  hushed  to  silence,  but  the 
Galilean  multitude  protest  that  no  one  sought  to 
kill  him.  They  little  knew;  but  the  people  of  Jeru- 
salem understood  all  about  it  and  a  group  of  them 
comment  on  the  fact  when  they  see  Jesus'  (John 
7  :  25)  and  even  poke  fun  at  the  rulers  for  not  arrest- 


122  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

ing  Christ.  Their  theology  as  to  the  origin  of  the 
Messiah  is  interesting  and  Christ  took  notice  of  it. 
His  enemies  resented  the  ridicule  of  the  people  of 
the  city  and  actually  sought  to  seize  him  then  and 
there.  But  Jesus  bore  a  charmed  life  as  yet.  His 
hour  had  not  come.  Some  of  the  Galilean  multi- 
tude become  outspoken  champions  of  Christ.  At 
this  time  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  (chief  priests) 
ordered  some  officers  to  arrest  him.  Jesus,  mean- 
while, in  mystic  language  announces  his  inde- 
pendence of  them,  which  his  enemies  fail  to  under- 
stand, thinking  he  will  teach  the  Greeks  (as  he  did 
indeed!)  The  people  become  more  excited  over  his 
words,  taking  sides  for  and  against,  some  even 
ready  to  seize  him.  But  the  soldiers  sent  for  that 
purpose  stood  and  heard  his  wondrous  words  and 
came  back  sheepishly  to  the  Sanhedrin  without 
Jesus.  The  Sanhedrin  stormed  at  the  officers  and 
sneered  at  them  and  at  the  ignorant  rabble  who  fol- 
lowed Christ.  The  officers  had  fallen  under  the 
spell  of  the  speech  of  Jesus,  a  tribute  to  his  char- 
acter as  well.  It  is  to  the  credit  of  Nicodemus  that, 
when  Jesus  was  there  under  fire  by  the  Sanhedrin, 
he  dared  to  make  a  point  of  law  in  his  favor.  He 
has  more  courage  now  than  when  he  went  to  see 
Jesus  by  night,  but  he  received  scorn  for  his  courage. 
The  rulers  are  exasperated  by  Christ  after  the 


THE  ATTACK  UPON  JERUSALExM         123 

feast.  The  multitudes  had  left  for  their  distant 
homes,  but  Jesus  remained  a  while  in  the  city  and 
continued  to  teach  in  the  temple.  His  teaching  con- 
sisted of  short,  crisp  sayings  that  drew  attention. 
One  of  these  stirred  the  Pharisees  mightily.  "I  am 
the  light  of  the  world"  (John  8  :  12),  he  said.  It  is 
an  astonishing  saying,  if  one  is  not  prepared  to  go 
to  the  full  length  of  the  deity  of  Christ,  indeed  other- 
wise an  impossible  saying.  The  Pharisees  took  it 
up  instantly.  The  dispute  turned  on  the  claim  of 
Jesus  that  God  was  his  Father.  That  was  its  justi- 
fication and  that  the  Pharisees  would  not  admit. 
Jesus  stung  them  again  by  saying  that,  if  they  did 
not  believe  in  him,  they  would  die  in  their  sins. 
"Who  art  thou?"  they  demanded.  If  he  would 
only  say  a  plain  word  that  they  could  lay  hold  of! 
But  he  points  to  the  cross  as  the  proof  that  he  is 
what  he  claims  to  be  (John  8  :  28),  a  proof  that  to 
them  was  only  a  stumbling  block.  Still  some  of 
the  Pharisees  were  impressed  and  said  that  they 
believed  on  him.  But  Jesus  had  been  suspicious 
of  the  Jerusalem  converts  the  first  visit  (John  2  :  24), 
and  proceeded  to  test  these  new  believers.  He 
offered  them  the  freedom  of  truth,  which  they  re- 
sented; he  offered  to  make  them  true  children  of 
Abraham,  but  they  were  insulted;  he  showed  that 
they  were  not  children  of  God  in  the  full  sense  and 


124  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

they  proved  it  by  trying  to  kill  Jesus,  a  man  who  told 
them  the  truth.  This  sublime  claim  of  existence 
before  Abraham  was  to  them  unendurable. 

The  Pharisees  are  twitted  by  a  blind  man  who  had 
been  healed  by  Jesus.  He  had  been  a  well-known 
beggar  and  had  a  regular  place  to  sit.  The  open- 
ing of  his  eyes  by  Jesus  created  a  stir  among  the 
man's  neighbors.  They  were  not  satisfied  with  his 
simple  narrative.  They  took  the  man  to  the  Phari- 
sees who  knew  everything,  but  it  was  pitiful,  the 
embarrassment  of  these  pious  wiseacres.  It  was 
done  on  the  Sabbath  and  therefore  God  did  not  do 
it.  But  then  it  was  done,  and  who  else  but  God 
could  do  it  ?  Some  argued  that  Jesus  was  a  sinner, 
else  he  would  not  have  done  it  on  the  Sabbath; 
others  that  the  man  was  never  blind  at  all.  They 
proceeded  to  settle  the  facts  in  the  case  by  logic! 
The  doctors  differed  and  the  man's  parents  were 
appealed  to.  They  identified  the  man  and  proved 
his  blindness.  So  the  Pharisees  were  in  a  corner. 
Their  logic  and  theology  were  bound  to  be  correct, 
but  how  to  explain  this  miserable  fact  without  ad- 
mitting the  natural  impression  as  to  Jesus  was  a 
puzzle!  They  had  appealed  to  the  devil  as  the  ex- 
planation of  the  expulsion  of  demons,  but  that  fal- 
lacy had  been  exposed.  The  devil  at  any  rate 
would  be  more  likely  to  put  eyes  out  rather  than  open 


THE  ATTACK  UPON  JERUSALEM         125 

them.  They  took  this  new  turn.  We  admit  the 
fact,  but  deny  the  conclusion.  You  just  admit  that 
Jesus  is  a  sinner  and  we,  well,  we  will  admit  that 
you  can  see!  The  man  saw  the  humor  of  the  situa- 
tion. He  was  no  theologian,  but  he  could  see  a 
point  as  plain  as  this.  He  opened  my  eyes  and  you 
cannot  tell  whence  he  is!  That  is  strange,  when 
you  know  everything!  Besides,  we  all  know  God 
does  not  hear  sinners.  But  my  eyes  are  open! 
They  turned  on  him  in  a  rage.  "Thou  wast  alto- 
gether born  in  sins,  and  dost  thou  teach  us?"  He 
had  cut  to  the  quick.  They  cast  him  out  of  the  syn- 
agogue, but  Jesus  then  led  him  into  the  Kingdom 
of  God  and  gave  him  spiritual  sight  also. 

The  enemies  of  Christ  have  their  picture  drawn 
by  Jesus.  They  did  not  sit  for  it  voluntarily,  but 
provoked  the  characterization  by  asking  Jesus 
"Are  we  also  blind?"  (John  9  :  40).  He  told  them 
the  allegory  of  the  Good  Shepherd  who  knows  his 
sheep  and  whose  sheep  know  him.  There  are  thieves 
and  robbers  who  want  to  get  the  sheep,  but  who  will 
run  at  the  sight  of  a  wolf  like  a  hireling.  But  the 
Good  Shepherd  will  die  for  his  sheep,  and  the  one 
flock  has  Gentile  as  well  as  Jewish  sheep.  It  was  a 
vivid  picture  and  some  of  them  cried  out :  "  He  hath 
a  demon,  and  is  mad."  Yes,  but  others  said,  "Can 
a  demon  open  the  eyes  of  the  blind  ? " 


126  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

2.  A  Campaign  in  Jvdea. — There  had  been  an 
early  Judean  ministry  which  was  only  too  successful. 
Now,  when  Jesus  has  to  leave  Jerusalem,  he  turns 
again  to  the  country  round  about.  As  yet  no  perma- 
nent impression  had  been  made  here.  Judas  Is- 
cariot  had  come  from  the  town  of  Kerioth,  and  in 
Bethany  Jesus  had  one  home  that  he  could  almost 
call  his  own.  He  needed  it,  too,  as  a  place  where 
he  could  find  rest  and  sympathy.  Lazarus,  Martha 
and  Mary  all  loved  Jesus  though  they  had  different 
ways  of  showing  it,  and  Jesus  greatly  loved  them. 

This  Judean  ministry  is  recorded  only  by  Luke 
who  fills  out  largely  the  events  of  the  last  six  months, 
his  distinctive  contribution  to  the  life  of  Christ. 
Many  of  the  events  are  similar  to  those  in  Galilee 
and  many  of  the  teachings  are  almost  identical. 
All  this  is  perfectly  natural.  There  were  Pharisees 
in  Judea  and  hence  the  blasphemous  accusation  is 
repeated.  Some  of  the  Pharisees  showed  courtesies 
also  to  Jesus  here  as  some  did  in  Galilee.  But  the 
breakfast  with  the  Pharisee  did  not  turn  out  well. 
He  put  on  airs  because  Christ  did  not  bathe  before 
the  meal  so  that  he  and  his  lawyer  guests  were  all 
sorely  rebuked  for  insistence  on  the  externals  to  the 
neglect  of  the  moral  and  spiritual.  The  breakfast 
seems  to  have  been  broken  up  in  disorder.  One  of 
the  sharp  lawyers  who  tried  to  entrap  Jesus  fell  into 


THE  ATTACK  UPON  JERUSALEM  127 

the  pit  himself,  but  we  forgive  him  since  he  was 
the  occasion  of  Christ's  telling  the  parable  of  the 
(rood  Samaritan  which  has  so  richly  blessed  the 
world.  It  is  not  strange  that  Jesus  should  send  out 
a  band  of  preachers  in  Judea  with  similar  instruc- 
tions to  those  given  the  twelve.  Luke  told  also  of 
the  sending  forth  of  the  twelve.  Christ  followed  after 
them  also  and  their  success  was  to  him  a  prophecy 
of  the  downfall  of  Satan. 

Some  of  the  sayings  of  Jesus  during  this  period 
(Luke  12)  are  much  like  portions  of  the  Sermon  on 
the  Mount.  One  must  never  forget  that  he  repeated 
his  sayings  often  and  as  a  teacher  ought  to  have  done 
so.  In  the  abstract  it  is  possible  that  Luke  has  here 
recorded  what  Jesus  said  in  Galilee,  but  it  cannot  be 
assumed  that  Christ  would  not  repeat  his  teachings 
in  different  parts  of  the  country,  or  even  in  the  same 
region. 

The  eagerness  of  Jesus  to  meet  his  fate  comes  out 
(Luke  12  :  49  f.).  He  longs  to  see  the  fire  blaze,  to 
receive  his  baptism  of  blood.  One  cannot  wonder 
at  this  when  he  recalls  what  the  Master  has  already 
undergone  and  how  hopeless  the  task  seems.  So 
few  understand  what  he  has  to  say  and  fewer  still 
seek  to  put  it  into  practice.  This  outburst  is  not 
impatience  but  it  helps  us  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  the 
volcano  of  emotion  locked  in  the  Saviour's  heart. 


128  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

3.  In  Jerusalem  Again. — Without  the  blare  of 
trumpets  Christ  comes  again.  It  is  winter  (the 
feast  of  dedication),  about  our  Christmas  time,  and 
he  is  walking  in  the  corridors  of  the  temple.  The 
hostile  Jews  gather  round  him  at  once  with  a  petu- 
lant question  of  impatience.  They  want  to  know 
who  he  is  and  what  he  has  to  say  about  himself. 
Evidently  his  last  visit  made  a  profound  impression 
on  them,  and  they  are  still  talking  about  it.  "If 
thou  art  the  Christ,  tell  us  plainly"  (John  10  :  25). 
The  question  was  a  legitimate  one,  but  they  wished 
to  make  a  bad  use  of  his  answer.  They  knew  very 
well  who  he  claimed  to  be,  but  they  wished  to  charge 
him  with  blasphemy.  But  Jesus  would  not  say  the 
word  Messiah  for  another  reason,  because  it  would 
inflame  the  populace  beyond  control.  So  he  stood 
his  ground  and  repeated  his  claim  of  oneness  with 
the  Father.  They  jumped  at  this  and  hurled  the 
charge  of  blasphemy  at  him  for  making  himself 
equal  with  God.  He  did  do  that,  but  it  was  not 
blasphemy,  for  he  was  equal  with  God.  He  would 
not  argue  that  point,  however,  but  he  used  an  argu- 
tnentum  ad  hominem  by  showing  how  in  their  law 
the  rulers  with  God's  authority  are  termed  gods.  It 
was  a  deft  turn,  but  did  not  appease  them.  If  they 
could  not  argue  with  him,  they  could  kill  him.  But 
he  was  swiftly  gone. 


THE  ATTACK  UPON  JERUSALEM  129 

4.  Beyond  Jordan  Again. — The  stay  of  Jesus  in 
Jerusalem  had  been  brief  and  the  collision  was  sharp 
and  soon  over.  He  did  not  stop  in  Judea,  but  went 
first  to  Bethany  beyond  Jordan  where  John  the 
Baptist  had  identified  him  and  where  he  had  won  his 
first  disciples.  What  memories  would  come  to 
Jesus  as  he  thinks  over  the  past.  In  a  sense  he  is 
now  a  fugitive  from  Jerusalem.  Had  he  made  a 
mistake  in  joining  issue  so  quickly  and  so  persistently 
with  the  Jerusalem  religious  leaders?  Could  he 
have  been  more  conciliatory  and  more  effective? 
The  devil  had  offered  him  compromise  and  power. 
He  will  go  on  as  he  began.  There  is  one  item  that 
glorifies  the  preaching  of  John  the  Baptist.  These 
people  knew  Jesus  because  of  what  John  had  said 
about  him.  That  is  a  pertinent  and  a  piercing  test 
of  modern  preaching. 

Luke  alone  gives  us  the  story  of  this  Perean  min- 
istry, save  a  few  verses  from  John,  but  not  much  is 
preserved.  We  have  to  think  over  what  we  know 
about  the  work  in  Galilee  and  Judea  and  imagine 
similar  scenes  here.  There  was  a  man  who  had  a 
theological  point  that  troubled  him.  He  wanted,  to 
know  how  many  would  be  saved.  Jesus  told  him 
that  he  had  better  try  to  get  to  heaven  himself.  One 
point  that  comes  out  is  the  anxiety  of  the  Pharisees 
lest  Jesus  shall  fall  into  the  hands  of  Herod  Antipas 


130  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

in  whose  territory  he  now  is.  Christ  understands 
"that  fox"  very  well  and  asserts  his  independence 
both  of  Herod  and  of  the  Pharisees.  It  is  difficult 
to  make  out  the  frame  of  mind  of  these  Pharisees, 
whether  they  were  really  friendly  to  Jesus,  whether 
they  were  mere  cat's-paws  of  Herod  who  wished 
Jesus  to  move  on,  or  whether  they  were  trying  to  in- 
veigle Jesus  back  to  Jerusalem.  Christ  saw  all  that 
was  involved  and  said  that  he  would  go  to  Jerusalem 
to  die  at  the  right  time.  Meanwhile  his  heart  went 
out  in  sorrow  over  Jerusalem. 

A  Pharisee  in  Perea  also  invites  Christ  to  break- 
fast and  three  parables  were  spoken  by  Jesus,  one 
to  the  guests,  one  to  the  host,  and  one  to  a  guest 
who  made  a  pious  and  platitudinous  remark  (Luke 
14  :  15f).  There  were  great  crowds  here  also  and 
Jesus  put  them  to  the  test  much  as  he  did  in  Galilee 
and  probably  with  the  same  result.  The  hard  con- 
ditions of  discipleship,  like  hating  one's  father,  etc., 
are  to  be  interpreted  in  this  light.  If  the  issue  is 
made  between  father  and  Christ,  one  must  not  hesi- 
tate. 

It  was  in  Perea  also  that  the  scribes  and  Pharisees 
sneered  at  Jesus  for  receiving  sinners  and  eating 
with  them  as  he  had  done  in  Galilee.  In  the  formal 
defense  made  by  him  for  his  conduct  in  seeking  to 
win  the  publicans  rather  than  the  Pharisees,  he  takes 


THE  ATTACK  UPON   JERUSALEM  131 

them  at  their  own  estimate  of  themselves,  not  meaning 
that  it  was  correct.  But  his  answer  was  complete. 
They  assumed  that  they  were  righteous.  Well  and 
good,  therefore;  they  did  not  need  Christ,  while  the 
publicans  did.  Hence  Christ  came  after  the  lost 
sheep,  the  lost  coin,  the  lost  son.  They  were  like 
the  elder  brother  and  were  sulking  because  publi- 
cans and  harlots  were  entering  the  Kingdom  of 
Heaven.  When  he  spoke  further  the  story  of  the 
Unjust  Steward,  the  Pharisees  scoffed  at  him,  for 
they  were  lovers  of  money.  But  they  ceased  scoffing 
when  he  told  the  parable  of  the  Rich  Man  and 
Lazarus,  though  they  hated  him  all  the  more.  We 
may  thank  the  Pharisees  for  one  thing.  They  fur- 
nished the  occasion  for  the  most  marvellous  parables 
in  all  the  world. 

5.  The  Sanhedrin  in  Desperation. — The  raising  of 
Lazarus  was  for  the  purpose  of  glorifying  God  and 
Jesus  the  Son  of  God  (John  11  :4).  It  was  pre- 
meditated and  so  a  deliberate  expression  of  divine 
power  right  in  the  teeth  of  the  enemies  of  Jesus. 
The  miracle  has  been  fiercely  attacked  in  modern 
times,  but  if  Christ  is  divine,  the  argument  for  its 
reality  stands.  The  larger  purpose  of  Jesus  here 
explains  his  apparent  indifference  to  the  request  of 
the  sisters  and  then  his  seeming  recklessness  from 
the  point  of  view  of  the  disciples  and  especially  of 


132  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

Thomas  who  had  the  courage  of  despair.  When 
he  comes  it  is  Martha  who  hints  that  Jesus  has  power 
with  God  even  now.  It  is  to  Martha  that  he  uses 
the  supreme  language  of  deity;  "I  am  the  resurrec- 
tion and  the  life."  It  is  Martha  also  who  makes  a 
confession  of  faith  in  Jesus  as  noble  as  that  of  Peter 
(John  11  :27).  With  Mary  he  exhibits  great  emo- 
tion in  spite  of  himself,  and  even  at  the  tomb  he  has 
difficulty  in  controlling  his  feelings.  Martha  re- 
coils at  the  last  moment,  but  Jesus  is  now  calm  and 
masterful.  It  was  a  majestic  moment  when  at  his 
command  Lazarus  stepped  forth  out  of  the  tomb. 
The  bearing  of  Jesus  was  never  more  dignified  nor 
more  serene  than  at  this  instant.  He  knew  that  Laz- 
arus would  come  forth. 

The  Jews  had  come  in  great  numbers  from  Jeru- 
salem to  console  the  sisters,  for  Lazarus  was  a  man  of 
wealth  and  position.  Many  of  those  that  saw  Laz- 
arus come  out  of  the  tomb  believed  on  Jesus.  Others 
went  and  told  the  Pharisees  what  had  occurred,  as 
if  in  search  of  help.  They  were  on  the  point  of  be- 
lieving too.  It  was  clear  that  something  had  to  be 
done,  and  that  at  once,  or  all  would  be  lost  and  for 
good. 

It  was  indeed  outrageous.  Jesus  had  done  this 
wonderful  deed  right  at  Jerusalem  without  their  help 
or  permission.     A  meeting  of  the  Sanhedrin  was 


THE  ATTACK  UPON   JERUSALEM  133 

called  to  deliberate  over  the  situation.  They  each 
asked  the  other:  "What  do  we?"  The  answer  was 
easy,  for  they  were  doing  nothing.  They  pre- 
dicted the  loss  of  their  place  and  of  the  nation  by 
the  Romans,  putting  place  before  patriotism.  Caia- 
phas  remarked  that  they  knew  nothing  at  all,  in 
which  he  was  correct.  He  suggested  that  they  make 
a  sacrifice  of  Jesus  for  the  sake  of  the  country. 
There  was  a  deeper  sense  in  his  words  than  he  knew, 
but  his  sense  of  the  proposal  was  a  failure.  They 
did  make  a  sacrifice  of  Jesus,  but  the  nation  was  de- 
stroyed by  the  Romans  and  they  did  lose  their 
places.  It  is  an  easy  and  an  old  way  out  of  a  diffi- 
culty to  propose  to  get  rid  of  the  other  man.  By  the 
death  of  Jesus  there  have  been  gathered  into  one  the 
children  of  God  scattered  all  over  the  world,  but  that 
was  God's  plan,  not  Caiaphas's  purpose.  But  now 
at  last  a  formal  decision  has  been  reached  by  the 
Sanhedrin  to  put  Christ  to  death  as  soon  as  possible. 
It  was  intolerable  that  Jesus  should  raise  the  dead 
right  at  their  doors.  Of  course,  he  was  a  deceiver! 
No  amount  of  power  or  proof  could  change  that  fact! 
6.  In  the  Mountains  of  Ephraim. — Back  into  the 
wilderness  Jesus  goes  near  the  region  where  he  had 
been  tempted  of  the  devil  after  his  baptism.  It  was 
a  dark  hour  from  the  human  point  of  view.  This 
then  was  the  outcome  of  the  Jerusalem  campaign. 


134  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

Galilee  at  least  had  not  tried  to  kill  him  save  at 
Nazareth.  True,  Jerusalem  had  several  times  be- 
fore attempted  his  life,  but  in  a  sporadic  way.  Now 
he  had  to  meet  the  formal  decision  of  the  Sanhedrin. 
If  anything,  now  the  Sadducees  are  more  active  than 
the  Pharisees  in  their  hatred.  One  cannot  doubt 
that  there  in  the  mountains  of  Ephraim  the  devil 
brought  to  the  mind  of  Jesus  all  the  points  that  told 
against  him.  He  could  remind  Jesus  how  it  might 
have  been  if  his  advice  had  been  followed.  It  was 
just  as  he  had  predicted. 

It  was  not  too  late  now  to  mend  matters  on  the 
same  terms.  The  devil  had  influence  with  the  San- 
hedrin and  could  easily  call  them  off  from  their 
murderous  purpose!  But  Jesus  had  fought  this 
battle  long  ago.  He  would  go  to  meet  his  hour.  He 
had  the  disciples  with  him  now  in  the  wilderness, 
but  how  little  they  understood  the  tragedy  that  was 
going  on  before  their  very  eyes. 

7.  Going  to  Face  the  Issue. — The  hour  is  near  at 
hand  and  Jesus  leaves  the  hills  of  Ephraim.  At 
first  it  looks  as  if  he  were  going  away  from  Jeru- 
salem for  he  turns  north  through  Samaria  and  into 
the  edge  of  Galilee.  But  it  is  only  to  join  one  of 
the  caravans  from  Galilee  for  the  passover  feast. 
His  brothers  had  once  suggested  that  he  go  down  in 
public.     Now  he  will  do  so.     He  will  go  to  Jerusalem 


THE  ATTACK  UPON  JERUSALEM         135 

as  a  King,  the  King  Messiah.  In  the  throng  would 
be  some  followers  of  Jesus  and  many  who  were  more 
or  less  friendly.  The  Pharisees  who  are  along  seem 
to  feel  that  something  is  in  the  air.  They  ask  Jesus 
when  the  Kingdom  of  God  comes.  He  does  not 
answer  that  question,  but  the  one  that  lay  back  of 
it,  the  character  of  the  Kingdom.  Men  will  not  see 
it  with  their  eyes  nor  point  it  out  as  here  or  there. 
It  is  in  the  hearts  of  men,  "within  you"  (Luke 
17  :  20f.).  The  Pharisees  make  no  reply,  for  the 
answer  of  Jesus  made  the  gulf  between  them  still 
wider.  This  was  not  the  sort  of  a  Kingdom  that 
they  wished.  To  the  disciples  Jesus  proceeded  to 
talk  of  his  second  coming.  That  subject  looms 
up  before  his  mind  now  as  his  death  draws  so  near. 
The  Son  of  Man  will  be  fully  revealed.  Meanwhile 
he  gave  an  immortal  picture  of  the  Pharisee  who 
went  up  into  the  temple  and  gave  the  Lord  a  great 
deal  of  pious  information  about  himself  and  called 
it  prayer.  The  publican  was  " the  sinner"  and  knew 
it,  but  the  Pharisee  had  to  wait  till  the  next  world 
to  find  out  how  big  a  sinner  he  was.  The  procession 
goes  on  through  Perea.  Now  the  story  is  told  by 
all  the  Synoptics. 

The  Pharisees  seek  to  catch  Jesus  on  the  question 
of  divorce.  They  were  divided  on  it  themselves, 
one  side  favoring  easy,  the  other,  hard  divorce.     In 


136  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

either  case  Jesus  would  hurt  himself.  But  they  were 
amazed  as  he  cut  through  their  pettifogging  scruples 
to  the  eternal  principle  of  marriage  and  showed 
that  Moses'  bill  of  divorcement  was  due  to  the  hard- 
ness of  the  hearts  of  the  people  and  was  a  great  ad- 
vance for  that  time.  The  attitude  of  Jesus  towards 
children  comes  out  well  here.  Even  the  disciples 
regarded  them  as  in  the  way.  Christ  has  made  the 
true  place  for  the  child  in  the  world.  No  wonder 
they  love  him. 

Jesus  had  to  correct  the  ideas  of  the  disciples  about 
money.  They  actually  supposed  money  proved 
that  one  was  a  favorite  of  heaven!  The  tendency 
to-day  is  to  think  that  poverty  is  a  proof  of  piety! 
One  young  man  found  out  how  much  he  loved  money, 
more  than  he  did  Christ.  Jesus  makes  another 
effort  to  teach  his  disciples  about  his  death  and  uses 
the  word  "crucify"  this  time.  His  looks  made  the 
disciples  amazed  and  afraid,  but  they  understood 
them  not.  They  were  merely  dazed  for  a  moment 
and  right  away  James  and  John  with  their  mother 
come  up  and  beg  the  two  chief  places  for  themselves 
in  the  Kingdom!  What  Kingdom?  What  places? 
It  was  pitiful,  and  at  such  a  time !  Jesus  offered  them 
the  martyr's  cup,  the  baptism  of  death,  which  they 
lightly  accepted.  How  little  they  knew  the  phil- 
osophy of  the  Kingdom.    Even  the  son  of  Man  had 


THE  ATTACK  UPON  JERUSALEM         137 

come  to  give  his  life  a  ransom  for  many   (Luke 

18  :  45).  The  ten,  of  course,  were  indignant,  not 
that  they  were  themselves  innocent  of  the  same 
spirit. 

8.  The  Challenge  to  Jerusalem.— Jesus  is  at  Jeri- 
cho and  all  is  astir.  Blind  Bartimeus  and  Zac- 
cheus  are  but  incidents  by  the  way.  He  was  nigh 
to  Jerusalem  and  the  people  supposed  that  the 
Kingdom  of  God  was  immediately  to  appear  (Luke 

19  :  11).  They  felt  it  in  the  air.  Their  sort  of  a 
Kingdom  was  now  to  appear.  The  real  Kingdom 
had  already  come  and  was  continually  coming. 

Jesus  told  the  parable  of  the  Pounds  to  discourage 
their  false  expectations,  and  yet  he  had  decided  to 
gratify  the  people  to  a  certain  extent.  He  went  on 
up  toward  Jerusalem  to  Bethany.  Here  with  the 
Bethany  family  he  can  spend  the  Sabbath  in  rest 
and  quiet.  Great  events  are  ahead  of  him  and  he 
needs  the  respite.  In  Jerusalem  itself  all  was  on 
the  qui  vive  as  to  whether  Jesus  would  come  to  the 
feast  or  not  now  that  the  Sanhedrin  had  decided  to 
kill  him.  They  had  made  public  request  for  his  ar- 
rest, perhaps  by  placard  in  the  temple  courts.  Out 
at  Bethany  many  came  not  only  to  see  Jesus,  but 
Lazarus  also.  The  feeling  was  tense  at  both  places, 
in  Jerusalem  antagonism,  in  Bethany  sympathy.  In 
Bethany  with  his  dear  friends  he  had  a  sweet  haven 


138  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

and  the  sun  shone  on  Olivet,  but  the  clouds  hung 
low  over  Jerusalem. 

Jesus  knew  that  the  people  could  not  understand 
his  claim  to  be  Messiah  without  plainer  language 
than  he  had  used.  He  will  now  employ  the  language 
of  action,  well  knowing  that  his  death  was  the  re- 
ward for  his  boldness.  His  enemies  had  long  wished 
him  to  say  in  plain  terms  that  he  is  the  Messiah. 
That  wish  will  now  be  gratified.  The  picture  of 
Jesus  that  Sunday  morning  on  the  colt  of  an  ass,  as 
Zechariah  had  said  the  King  Messiah  would  ride, 
was  not  one  to  strike  terror  to  the  heart.  He  was 
King  of  Peace,  and  yet  as  the  multitude  from  the 
city  joined  the  multitude  from  the  village,  and  all 
turned  down  the  slope  of  Olivet  toward  Jerusalem 
the  Pharisees  who  saw  it  thought  that  all  was  over. 
This  popular  demonstration  meant  to  them  that 
Jesus  had  won.  They  would  not  dare  lay  hands  on 
him  while  he  had  so  many  friends.  So  they  turned 
and  blamed  each  other  for  this  outcome.  "  Behold, 
how  ye  prevail  nothing:  lo,  the  world  is  gone  after 
him"  (John  12 :  19).  Others  of  the  Pharisees  sought 
to  shame  Jesus  into  rebuking  his  disciples  for  the  up- 
roar (Luke  19: 39). 

But  they  are  hailing  Jesus  as  the  Son  of 
David.  The  Kingdom  of  God  has  come  at  last. 
Hosannah.     Peace   in   heaven    and   glory   in   the 


THE  ATTACK  UPON  JERUSALEM  139 

highest.  If  these  had  stopped  now,  the  very  stones 
would  have  cried  out.  The  clamor  grew  worse,  for 
in  the  temple  courts  the  very  boys  took  up  the  strains 
from  the  crowd,  to  the  chagrin  of  the  chief  priests 
and  scribes  who  even  sought  to  get  Jesus  to  stop 
that.  With  a  look  around  upon  all  this  scene  Christ 
went  back  to  Bethany  with  the  disciples.  What 
did  they  think  of  the  Master  now  ?  For  the  moment 
he  was  Master  indeed,  the  hero  of  the  hour  and  in 
Jerusalem  at  that. 

9.  A  Foretaste  of  the  Struggle. — Jesus  had  crossed 
the  Rubicon  and  now  the  issue  was  to  be  fought  out. 
The  exasperation  of  his  enemies  increased  as  he 
came  to  the  temple  next  day  to  teach.  He  cleansed 
the  temple  again  as  he  had  done  at  the  beginning  and 
this  maddened  the  rulers  still  more.  The  popularity 
of  Jesus  was  unendurable.  They  came  early  to  get 
standing  room  about  the  great  Teacher  and  hung  on 
his  words  listening.  He  was  the  centre  of  all  eyes. 
The  rulers  had  found  out  where  he  was  very  well, 
but  what  to  do  with  him  was  the  problem,  for  they 
feared  this  multitude. 

Some  Greeks  at  the  feast  heard  of  him  and  courte- 
ously asked  of  Philip  to  be  presented  to  him.  But 
Philip  felt  embarrassed  by  the  request  and  consulted 
Andrew  the  man  of  counsel.  But  even  Andrew 
was  not  able  to  untie  this  knot.     They  bring  the 


140  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

problem,  but  not  the  Greeks,  to  Jesus  for  his  de- 
cision. The  middle  wall  of  partition  between  Jew 
and  Greek  Jesus  had  come  to  break  down,  but  there 
was  only  one  way  to  do  it.  Greeks  will  come  to  him 
indeed,  as  will  all  classes  of  men,  when  he  is  lifted  up. 
The  law  of  life  is  death,  as  Christ  explains  by  the 
grain  of  wheat.  Jesus  in  profound  words  sets  forth 
the  principle  of  his  atoning  death,  the  voluntary 
giving  of  his  life  for  men.  So  vivid  does  all  this  be- 
come to  him,  as  he  contemplates  his  hour,  that  in 
agony  as  in  Gethsemane  he  cries  out  to  the  Father 
to  save  him  from  this  hour  (John  12  :27),  but  with 
instant  submission.  "Father,  glorify  Thy  name." 
This,  then,  is  Christ's  idea  of  his  death :  it  is  a  glori- 
fication of  the  Father's  name.  Once  more,  the  third 
time,  the  Father  speaks  in  audible  voice  words  of 
approval.  The  Father  thus  understands  this  view 
of  his  death.  No  one  else  at  that  hour  understood 
either  him  or  the  Father.  The  darkness  of  the 
eclipse  is  coming  on. 

10.  The  Victorious  Debate. — The  rulers  felt  keenly 
their  disadvantage  now  before  the  people.  There 
was  the  raising  of  Lazarus,  the  triumphal  entry,  the 
cleansing  of  the  temple,  the  marvellous  teaching. 
The  spell  must  be  broken  somehow.  He  must  be 
exposed  and  made  ridiculous,  if  nothing  more. 
Tuesday  morning,  as  Jesus  walked  and  taught  in  the 


THE  ATTACK  UPON  JERUSALEM         141 

corridors  of  the  temple  with  admiring  crowds  of 
listeners,  he  suddenly  found  himself  confronted  by  a 
company  of  the  rulers  who  challenged  his  authority. 
But  all  at  once  they  are  themselves  on  the  defensive  as 
Jesus  by  a  pertinent  question  asked  their  opinion  of 
John's  baptism.  John  had  introduced,  baptized, 
and  identified  Jesus  as  the  Messiah.  If  John's 
baptism  were  of  God,  that  was  the  answer  to  their 
question,  for  he  was  the  Messiah.  But  the  ques- 
tion of  Jesus  put  them  in  a  hopeless  quandary,  and 
they  timidly  begged  to  be  excused,  and  so  they  are 
laughed  at,  not  Jesus.  Christ  pressed  his  advan- 
tage by  then  telling  parables  which  the  rulers  saw 
were  against  them,  but  which  they  were  helpless 
to  turn.  They  stepped  back,  cowed,  saddened,  but 
no  wiser.  The  Pharisees  and  Herodians  rallied 
and  came  to  the  rescue  by  sending  some  of  their 
brightest  students  to  ask  a  question  about  tribute  to 
Caesar.  The  people,  of  course,  were  opposed  to 
the  Roman  taxes  and  hated  the  publicans  who  col- 
lected them.  But  to  oppose  the  taxes  publicly  was 
treason  against  Caesar.  It  was  with  a  deal  of  pious 
palaver  that  these  youngsters  gave  him  what  they 
thought  was  a  hopeless  dilemma.  But  at  the  reply  of 
Jesus  they  looked  simple,  held  their  peace,  and  stepped 
back,  wondering  greatly  at  finding  one  wiser  than 
they  were.     The  Sadducees  enjoyed  the  defeat  of  the 


142  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

Pharisees  and  Herodians  and  tried  now  their  hand 
with  a  stock  story  about  the  resurrection  which  the 
Pharisees  had  never  been  able  to  meet.  But  Jesus 
showed  by  the  word  of  God  to  Moses  that  they  were 
in  error,  not  knowing  the  Scriptures.  They,  too, 
were  silent,  but  the  Pharisees  (scribes)  could  not 
keep  still.  "Master  thou  hast  well  said"  (Luke 
20  :  39). 

At  this  the  Pharisees  gathered  in  a  jubilant  group 
and  one  of  the  lawyers  among  them  volunteered  his 
services  to  his  embarrassed  friends.  He  tempted 
Jesus  by  a  question  in  his  own  specialty,  the  law. 
He  could  only  acquiesce  in  the  reply  of  Jesus  and 
retire.  Our  Lord  now  turned  on  the  assembled 
Pharisees  and  asked  them  a  question  about  the 
person  of  the  Messiah,  the  very  thing  that  they  had 
so  often  asked  him.  How  could  he  be  the  Lord  of 
David  and  the  Son  of  David  at  the  same  time? 
The  problem  really  was  that  of  the  humanity  and 
the  divinity  of  the  Messiah.  He  had  carried  the 
war  into  Africa  and  put  them  all  to  rout.  No  one 
dared  ask  him  another  word.  "The  common  peo- 
ple heard  him  gladly. " 

They  were  still  cowering  before  Jesus,  and  for 
once  he  let  loose  the  vials  of  his  wrath  upon  his  re- 
lentless foes.  He  called  attention  to  the  high  posi- 
tion of  these  teachers  and  how  they  had  degraded 


THE  ATTACK  UPON  JERUSALEM         143 

their  office.  They  hid  the  truth,  they  made  prose- 
lytes worse  than  they  were  before,  they  were  mere 
hair-splitters,  they  put  wrong  emphasis  on  truths, 
they  were  ceremonialists  without  the  spirit,  they 
were  professional  religionists,  boasters  of  heredity, 
in  a  word  hypocrites,  serpents,  offspring  of  vipers, 
with  the  judgment  of  hell  upon  them.  It  was  ter- 
rific; before  this  hailstorm  and  lightning  his  enemies 
shrunk  away  and  the  crowd  dispersed.  The  heart  of 
Jesus  bursts  out  in  lament  over  Jerusalem  soon  to  be 
desolate,  while  the  disciples  gathered  in  silence  apart. 
Jesus  sat  down  in  exhaustion  and  watched  the  people 
cast  their  gifts  into  the  treasury,  especially  one  poor 
widow  whose  piety  doubtless  cheered  him.  All  was 
quiet  now  after  the  storm.  He  went  out  of  the 
temple,  his  Father's  house,  for  good  and  all.  His 
enemies  were  like  maddened  hornets. 

11.  The  PropJiecy  of  Doom. — As  they  went  out 
Jesus  pointed  to  the  fine  temple  buildings  and  prophe- 
sied the  destruction  of  them  all.  It  sounded,  as  it 
was,  like  an  echo  of  his  recent  denunciation  of  his 
enemies.  The  desolation  of  Jerusalem  would  be 
due  to  their  treatment  of  him.  The  debate  had 
closed  with  Christ  as  complete  victor.  But  Jesus 
knew  that  people  are  seldom  convinced  against  their 
will  by  debate.  They  would  answer  him  in  some 
other  wav.     Behind  the  death  of  Christ  lies  the  de- 


144  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

struction  of  Jerusalem.  Further  in  the  background 
still  lies  the  end  of  the  world.  As  Jesus  sat  on  Olivet 
and  looked  down  at  the  city  that  he  had  longed  to 
save,  all  these  catastrophes  pressed  upon  him  and 
blend  into  one  common  picture.  Language  after 
all  is  pictographical.  It  is  hardly  possible  to  sep- 
arate all  the  details  of  each  part  of  this  composite 
picture  of  doom.  And  Jesus  expressly  disclaimed 
knowledge  of  the  time  of  the  end  of  the  world, 
though  he  expected  the  destruction  of  the  city  to 
come  in  that  generation,  as  indeed  it  did.  Escha- 
tology  is  not  a  lucid  subject  at  best  and  on  this  occa- 
sion the  double  theme  makes  it  extremely  difficult 
for  us.  But  the  Kingdom  of  God  will  be  taken  from 
the  Jews  and  given  to  the  Gentiles.  The  doom  of 
the  city  will  be  in  one  sense  a  coming  of  Jesus  again 
in  judgment  and  will  symbolize  the  final  coming. 
The  main  practical  lesson  then  and  now  for  us  is  to 
be  ready.  The  very  uncertainty  demands  diligence, 
not  carelessness.  It  is  easy  to  say  that  Jesus  was 
mistaken  because  he  has  not  yet  come,  but  one  who 
believes  in  Jesus  as  Lord  will  prefer  to  wait  and  trust 
and  be  ready.  They  left  the  summit  of  Olivet  and 
went  down  to  Bethany  that  night.  What  a  day  it 
had  been!  What  thoughts  were  in  the  hearts  of 
Jesus  and  the  disciples! 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM 
"Crucify,  crucify  him"  (Luke  23  :  31). 

But  it  was  not  yet  to  rest  that  Jesus  went  to  Bethany. 
His  friends  there  had  a  social  service  to  render  him. 

1.  An  Appreciative  Group  in  Bethany. — They  did 
not  meet  at  the  house  of  Mary  and  Martha  but  with 
Simon,  who  had  been  a  leper  (not  Simon  the  Phari- 
see), and  who  wished  to  show  his  love  and  gratitude 
to  Jesus.  Christ  had  told  his  disciples  that  after 
two  days  he  would  be  crucified,  thus  for  the  first 
time  setting  a  date  for  the  event.  Their  hearts,  at 
least,  would  be  heavier  than  usual  during  the  feast. 
John  mentions  this  feast  out  of  place  in  connection 
with  his  last  account  of  Bethany,  but  we  follow 
the  Synoptic  order. 

Lazarus  was  there  back  from  the  grave,  and  Jesus 
was  there  soon  to  die.  The  occasion  thus  brought 
forth  mingled  emotions.  It  was  Mary  of  Bethany, 
not  Mary  Magdalene,  whose  spiritual  devotions  found 
fit  expression  in  the  ointment  with  which  she  anointed 
his  head  and  his  feet.  She  wiped  his  feet  with  her 
hair.  She  had  caught  the  truth  about  his  death 
145 


146  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

and  thus  delicately  expressed  her  love  for  the  Master. 
It  would  seem  that  even  those  who  would  not  thus 
have  shown  their  feelings  toward  Christ  could  at 
least  have  been  willing  for  Mary  to  do  so.  But 
every  one  of  the  disciples  followed  the  lead  of 
Judas  in  his  blunt  and  brutal  protest  against  Mary's 
wasteful  extravagance.  She  found  a  champion, 
however,  in  Jesus,  who  understood  her  motives  and 
approved  her  deed,  interpreting  it  for  the  dull  dis- 
ciples. But  it  was  a  distinct  rebuke  to  Judas  and, 
as  it  proved,  the  last  straw  that  was  needed  to  break 
the  back  of  his  impatience. 

2.  The  Sanhedrin  Receive  Unexpected  Help. — At 
the  very  hour  of  this  feast  when  the  rulers  had  met 
in  Jerusalem  to  talk  over  the  situation,  they  were 
stung  beyond  endurance  by  the  triumph  and  defiance 
of  Jesus  that  morning  in  the  temple,  and  all  the  more 
so  that  now  they  felt  so  helpless.  They  had  before 
the  passover  made  public  proclamation  of  their 
purpose  to  arrest  Jesus,  but  now  they  timidly  feared 
his  power  with  the  people.  It  is  evident  that  they 
must  take  Jesus  by  stealth,  and  after  the  passover  is 
over  and  the  crowds  have  gone.  This  is  the  part  of 
wisdom  as  all  agree.  They  are  still  determined  to 
kill  him  to  save  the  state  and  themselves.  But  all 
at  once  Judas,  one  of  the  twelve  disciples,  steps  into 
the  room.     At  first,  perhaps,  the  conspirators  are 


THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM  147 

stunned  and  fear  some  new  attack  from  Christ, 
but  Judas  relieves  their  fears  by  blurting  out: 
44  What  are  ye  willing  to  give  me  and  I  will  de- 
liver him  unto  you?"  (Matt.  26  :  15).  What  else 
he  said  to  convince  them  of  his  sincerity  we  do  not 
know. 

He  may  have  said  that  he  was  tired  of  the  whole 
business,  that  there  was  nothing  in  it  for  him,  and 
he  would  like  to  see  the  bubble  burst  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible. In  his  heart  he  was  disappointed  that  Jesus 
was  going  to  die  and  not  be  the  kind  of  a  Messiah 
that  he  expected;  perhaps  envy  had  arisen  toward 
Peter,  John  and  James.  Jesus  had  proven  to  be  an 
idle  dreamer  and  had  thrown  away  his  opportunity. 
At  the  feast,  this  very  night,  he  had  given  him  a  pub- 
lic insult  while  the  money  bag  was  empty.  He  knew 
the  haunts  and  habits  of  Christ  at  night,  his  place 
of  prayer,  for  instance,  and  so  could  easily  catch  him 
if  they  would  furnish  the  soldiers.  They  must  not 
wait  till  after  the  passover  feast.  It  could  be  done 
right  away.  The  Sanhedrin  were  convinced.  It 
seemed  providential  to  these  pious  murderers,  this 
opportune  convert,  and  one  right  from  the  very  circle 
of  Jesus'  friends.  Who  could  have  believed  such 
good  fortune  possible  ?  They  were  glad,  which  was 
more  than  they  had  been  for  a  long  time.  The  price 
agreed  on  was  the  price  of  a  slave,  thirty  pieces  of 


148  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

silver,  and  perhaps  was  meant  in  that  sense.  It  now 
remained  for  Judas  to  fulfill  his  contract.  What 
ever  the  motives  that  prompted  Judas  were,  clearly 
he  was  now  wholly  in  the  power  of  the  devil.  It  is 
amazing  how  common  turncoats  are,  men  who  are 
easily  rebuffed  and  wish  to  show  their  spite.  The 
act  of  Judas  was  secret,  but  it  did  not  escape  the 
knowledge  of  Christ.  Did  Judas  suspect  next  day 
that  Jesus  knew?  The  day  was  spent  in  rest  at 
Bethany,  for  it  was  useless  now  to  go  again  to  Jeru- 
salem to  teach  anyone.  The  die  had  been  cast  and 
Jesus  would  take  the  consequences. 

3.  Jesus1  Concern  for  the  Disciples. — How  will 
they  stand  the  awful  catastrophe  before  them? 
Christ  will  make  one  more  effort  to  prepare  them  for 
his  arrest,  condemnation  and  death.  Peter  and 
John  are  sent  to  make  ready  the  passover,  and  at  the 
evening  hour  at  the  time  of  the  regular  passover 
meal  the  disciples  assemble  in  Jerusalem  with  Jesus 
in  the  supper-room,  perhaps  in  the  house  of  Mary, 
the  mother  of  John  Mark.  The  heart  of  Jesus  is 
stirred  with  emotion  before  he  suffers  (Luke  22  : 
15  f).  Judas  had  put  on  a  bold  front  and  come  in, 
but  besides  his  presence  the  contention  of  the  twelve 
for  the  chief  place  grated  on  the  spirit  of  Christ 
(Luke  22  :  24  f),  and  finally  led  to  his  rebuking  them 
by  an  object  lesson  of  humility  (John  13  :  15).     It 


THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM  149 

was  a  poor  start  for  this  last  passover  to  begin  in 
such  a  fashion. 

But  this,  bad  as  it  was,  was  a  small  matter  com- 
pared with  what  Christ  had  to  disclose  to  them. 
One  of  them  was  going  to  betray  him  to  the  Sanhe- 
drin.  The  thing  seemed  incredible,  but  Jesus  had 
said  it.  With  startled  faces  they  looked  at  each 
other  and  then  at  Jesus,  one  after  the  other  asking, 
"Is  it  I,  Lord  ?"  Of  course  Judas  had  to  ask  also. 
Peter  motioned  to  John  to  ask  Jesus  who  it  was, 
but  the  disciples  did  not  seem  to  understand  the 
sign  given  by  Christ  nor  to  have  heard  what  he  said 
to  Judas  when  he  went  out.  But  he  was  gone  and 
it  was  night. 

Jesus  drew  closer  to  the  eleven  and  his  heart  went 
out  to  them.  He  urged  that  they  love  one  another, 
those  who  had  just  contended  for  the  chief  places. 
Satan  was  after  them  all,  had  Judas  for  good,  and 
was  hard  after  Peter. 

But  Jesus  had  prayed  especially  for  Peter  so  that 
he  would  stand  the  sifting.  Peter  really  thought 
the  anxietv  of  Christ  needless  in  his  case.  He  had 
forgotten  how  he  had  once  played  the  part  of  Satan. 
So  all  felt,  but  Peter  was  vehement  in  his  assertion 
of  readiness  to  die  for  Jesus,  if  necessary.  If  they 
only  knew!  They  will  need  to  struggle  now  and 
to  fight,  though  not  with  literal  swords  as  they  un- 


150  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

derstood  Christ,  but  Jesus  cannot  explain  further, 
for  they  would  not  understand.  Probably  the 
Lord's  Supper  was  instituted  by  Christ  after  Judas 
left,  if  we  follow  the  order  of  Mark  and  Matthew  and 
not  Luke.  There  was  a  hush  in  the  upper  chamber 
as  Jesus  talked  on  of  his  death,  symbolized  by  this 
ordinance.  He  really  meant  to  die.  That  was 
perfectly  plain.  It  is  John  who  has  preserved  for 
us  this  unbosoming  of  the  heart  of  Christ.  He  told 
them  all  that  they  could  bear  and  more  than  they 
then  understood  about  the  Father,  the  Son,  the 
Holy  Spirit,  and  the  future  of  Christianity.  But  the 
insistent  note  in  it  all  was  their  need  of  faith  in  Jesus 
after  his  death.  They  must  believe  in  him  as  they 
believed  in  God,  for  he  was  one  with  the  Father 
whom  he  had  manifested  to  them  in  himself.  They 
can  pray  to  him  also  and  he  will  hear.  He  will  send 
the  Holy  Spirit  besides  to  take  his  place  as  comforter 
and  guide  to  truth  and  life.  They  must,  in  a  word, 
abide  in  him  and  love  one  another,  for  the  world  will 
hate  and  persecute  them.  But  after  all  it  was  best 
for  them  that  he  go  away,  best  for  their  own  develop- 
ment, best  for  the  progress  of  the  Kingdom  of  God. 
The  new  Teacher  will  explain  Jesus  himself  to  them 
and  then  they  will  know  what  he  is  now  trying  to 
make  clear.  Besides  he  will  come  back  to  them. 
Thev  will  see  him  in  a  little  while  when  he  returns 


THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM  151 

from  the  grave.  They  will  have  his  presence  through 
the  Holy  Spirit  even  after  his  ascension.  Moreover, 
he  will  at  death  take  each  one  of  them  to  the  Father. 
He  will  come  again  at  the  end  of  the  world.  He 
himself  came  from  the  Father  and  is  going  back  to 
the  Father. 

Thomas,  Philip,  Judas  (not  Iscariot),  at  first 
asked  questions,  as  he  talked,  but  soon  all  was 
silent  attention.  Now  at  last  they  seem  to  appre- 
hend the  meaning  of  Jesus.  They  know  and  be- 
lieve, they  say.  If  they  only  did!  Christ  had  said 
all  to  them  that  was  worth  while.  But  he  could  talk 
to  the  Father  about  them.  Either  while  still  in 
the  upper  room  or  possibly  in  the  moonlight  on  the 
street  outside,  Jesus  stopped  and  prayed  a  wonderful 
prayer  about  himself,  these  eleven  men  and  the  other 
disciples  through  all  the  ages.  As  for  himself  he 
longed  to  go  back  to  the  Father,  to  the  glory,  to  the 
fellowship.  As  for  the  eleven  apostles,  he  had  great 
solicitude.  He  had  done  his  best  with  them  while 
with  them,  but  now  he  is  to  leave  them  in  the  world 
without  him.  Will  they  leaven  the  world  or  will  the 
world  master  them?  Satan  will  seek  to  win  them. 
He  prays  that  the  Father  will  keep  them  now  from 
the  evil  one.  If  only  all  the  disciples  in  all  the  ages 
can  keep  down  bickerings,  personal  rivalries,  jeal- 
ousies, rancors,  divisions  on  unimportant  matters, 


152  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

the  world  will  soon  know  that  Jesus  is  the  Saviour  of 
men  and  the  Son  of  God.  It  is  not  organic  unity 
that  Christ  has  in  mind.  It  is  something  far  deeper, 
unity  of  Spirit  and  freedom  from  strife  such  as  the 
disciples  had  shown  this  very  night. 

4.  The  Struggle  of  Jesus  with  Himself. — The 
Master  had  held  up  boldly  while  exhorting  and  con- 
soling the  disciples,  but  in  reality  he  was  in  the 
depths  himself.  Every  true  preacher  knows  what  it 
is  to  comfort  other  hearts  while  his  own  is  breaking. 
But  the  reaction  had  to  come  after  the  strain  of  so 
much  emotional  talk.  There  were  a  few  brief  hours 
before  the  crisis  came,  and  these  Jesus  would  spend 
in  prayer.  He  had  the  habit  of  going  to  the  Garden 
of  Gethsemane  for  prayer  at  night  and  this  custom 
Judas  knew  and  took  advantage  of  it.  In  his  great- 
est agony  Jesus  naturally  sought  this  spot.  Besides 
many  obvious  advantages,  it  was  a  comfort  to  him 
to  be  in  the  place  where  he  had  often  communed 
with  the  Father.  The  very  surroundings  would  help 
him  in  his  hour  of  depression  which  he  felt  coming 
on.  He  never  needed  the  support  of  prayer  so  much, 
not  even  in  the  dreadful  temptations  in  the  begin- 
ning of  his  ministry. 

Christ  knew  that  Judas  would  come  here  and  so 
he  divided  the  disciples,  leaving  eight  near  the  gate 
and  taking  Peter,  James  and  John  further  in  to 


THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM  153 

watch  while  he  prayed.  Instantly  Jesus  "began  to 
be  greatly  amazed "  (Mark  14  :  33).  He  had 
never  felt  that  way  before.  He  turned  to  the  three 
and  said :  "  Pray  that  ye  enter  not  into  temptation " 
(Luke  22  :  40).  The  temptation  of  all  tempta- 
tions was  now  upon  him,  to  recoil  from  the  cup 
which  he  had  offered  to  drink.  He  did  not  know 
it  would  be  so  bitter,  and  he  had  to  take  the  very 
dregs  of  the  cup.  He  was  free  from  sin,  and  now  for 
sin  to  smite  him  was  hard.  On  his  face  on  the  ground 
he  prayed,  "O  My  Father,"  "Abba,  Father"  in  the 
Aramaic  of  his  childhood.  How  could  he  endure 
to  be  looked  upon  as  sin?  He  cried  out  against 
the  cup,  but  instantly  he  acquiesced  in  the  Father's 
will,  "  as  Thou  wilt."  That  was  victory,  to  submit 
to  the  Father.  An  angel  from  heaven  strengthened 
him,  and  that  was  the  Father's  answer  to  his  prayer. 
But  the  agony  increased  till  his  sweat  became,  as  it 
were,  great  drops  of  blood  (probable  text  of  Luke). 
But  in  it  all  Jesus  had  won  and  now  was  calmer. 
He  turns  to  the  disciples  and  finds  them  asleep! 
They  were  only  a  stone  s  throw  away,  but  they  had 
gone  to  sleep  as  the  Son  of  God  battled  with  himself 
for  human  redemption.  It  did  seem  hard  if  they 
could  not  watch  at  such  a  time  for  one  hour.  They 
had  no  excuse  to  offer,  save  weariness,  but  they  slept 
again  through  the  two  succeeding  struggles  of  Christ. 


154  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

How  little  they  understood  what  it  was  all  about. 
How  little  sympathy  they  gave  Jesus  in  his  hour  of 
great  need.  But  Christ  had  won  the  last  great 
battle  with  himself.  He  could  go  to  Calvary  now. 
He  would  drink  the  cup.  It  matters  little  now 
whether  they  sleep  or  not. 

5.  Jesus  Gives  Himself  up  to  His  Foes. — It  should 
never  be  overlooked  that  Christ  made  a  voluntary 
surrender  of  himself  to  his  enemies.  Vain  the 
Roman  soldiers  with  all  their  weapons  and  torches, 
vain  all  the  treachery  of  Judas,  vain  the  persistent 
hatred  of  the  Sanhedrin,  if  Jesus  had  not  been 
willing  to  die.  He  could  call  legions  of  angels  to  his 
help.  He  did  indeed  smite  the  soldiers  to  the  earth 
with  a  word  as  he  stepped  forth  to  meet  them. 
Jesus  rallied  them  for  their  timidity  in  coming  there 
by  night  instead  of  arresting  him  openly  in  the  temple. 

But  Judas  did  not  lose  his  nerve.  He  had  taken 
advantage  of  his  knowledge  of  the  devotional  habits 
of  Jesus  in  order  to  betray  him.  His  infamy  was 
to  sink  still  lower  when  he  gave  the  kiss  as  a  sign  to 
the  soldiers.  Christ  was  shocked  at  this  depravity. 
Peter's  blood  was  stirred  at  the  baseness  and  he 
wanted  to  fight.  He  did  indeed  try  to  kill  Malchus,  a 
servant  of  the  High  Priest,  and  cut  off  his  right  ear 
as  he  dodged  his  head.  But  Jesus  would  not  allow 
that  much  use  of  the  sword  for  himself.     He  healed 


THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM  Ioj 

the  ear  and  insisted  that  the  Scriptures  must  be  ful- 
filled. He  must  drink  the  cup.  It  was  the  hour 
and  the  power  of  darkness  (Luke  22  :  53).  Christ's 
hour  and  the  power  of  light  will  come  later.  The 
disciples  were  paralyzed  with  fear  when  Jesus  re- 
fused to  use  his  power  to  protect  himself  and  for- 
bade their  doing  anything.  The  spectacle  of  Christ 
in  bonds  was  too  much  for  them.  He  had  always 
defeated  his  enemies  before  but  now  he  would  not 
do  anything.  It  was  clearly  time  for  them  to  take 
care  of  themselves.  Even  Peter  fled,  too,  after  all 
his  talk  of  courage.  A  young  man,  possibly  Mark, 
came  near  getting  into  trouble  for  following  Jesus 
after  the  arrest.  He  had  to  flee  naked.  Surely 
blackness  of  night  had  now  come.  To  Judas  it 
was  all  easier  than  he  had  thought. 

6.  Jesus  Faces  His  Accusers. — Peter  and  John 
followed  him  to  the  palace  of  the  High  Priest.  John 
went  on  inside,  but  Peter  remained  in  the  outer 
court.  Now  Jesus  is  in  the  toils  of  his  enemies. 
At  last  they  have  him  in  their  clutches  after  years 
of  effort.  How  they  chuckled  with  satisfaction. 
They  will  now  show  him  who  understands  the  law 
and  whose  theology  is  right.  Thev  will  answer  all 
his  arguments  by  death.  The  logic  of  persecution 
limps  badly.  The  trouble  is  that  the  truth  cannot  be 
killed  though  you  kill  the  man  who  teaches  it.    The 


156  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

vitality  of  truth  is  marvellous.  But  the  persecutor 
never  learns  anything  and  unhesitatingly  flings  him- 
self against  eternal  truth  and  the  eternal  God.  There 
are  two  trials,  the  Jewish  and  the  Roman,  though,  as  a 
matter  of  fact,  only  the  Roman  was  pertinent,  for  the 
Sanhedrin  had  already  decided  on  his  death,  and  did 
not  have  the  power  of  death.  Still  it  would  look 
strange  for  them  to  demand  his  death  without  a  trial 
and  so  they  would  go  through  the  form  of  it.  But 
nearly  every  form  of  law  and  every  principle  of  justice 
is  disregarded  to  get  a  conviction. 

The  Jewish  trial  has  three  stages  in  it,  though  the 
appearance  before  Annas  is  merely  a  preliminary  ex- 
amination by  the  ex-high  priest,  probably,  while  the 
Sanhedrin  is  assembling.  He  asks  Jesus  about  his 
disciples  and  his  teaching  with  a  fling  at  both. 
Christ  with  dignity  appealed  to  the  publicity  and  suc- 
cess of  his  work.  His  protest  led  a  bystander  to 
strike  Jesus,  who  did  not  turn  the  other  cheek,  but 
made  a  calm,  yet  firm  denial  of  the  justice  of  that 
blow.  Soon  the  Sanhedrin  meets,  possibly  in  the 
same  palace,  a  full  meeting,  with  the  probable 
exception  of  Joseph  and  Nicodemus.  Caiaphas 
presides  and  acts  as  chief  prosecutor  as  well.  It 
was  illegal  to  try  such  a  case  at  night,  anyhow.  The 
witnesses  were  hired  and  told  nothing  after  all. 
The  farce  was  at  an  end  when  two  witnesses  brought 


THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM  157 

up  what  Jesus  had  said  about  the  destruction  of 
Jerusalem  three  years  before,  misconstrued  it,  and 
disagreed  in  the  misconstruction.  But  the  high 
priest  had  to  pretend  that  something  had  been  made 
out,  and  in  a  great  rage  demanded  that  Jesus  defend 
himself.  There  was  nothing  to  defend  himself 
against,  and,  if  there  had  been,  he  did  not  have  to 
incriminate  himself.  It  was  only  when  the  high 
priest  put  Christ  on  oath  as  to  whether  he  was  the 
Messiah  or  not  that  Jesus  spoke.  This,  after  all, 
was  what  was  the  matter.  To  refuse  to  answer 
now  would  have  been  proper  legally,  but  would 
have  been  understood  as  a  denial  of  his  Messiahship. 
Then  Jesus  spoke  with  clearness,  "I  am."  More- 
over, the  day  will  come  when  this  Sanhedrin  will 
stand  before  him  who  will  sit  at  the  right  hand  of 
power.  This  transcendent  claim  made  it  easier  for 
them  to  have  a  show  of  right  in  voting  that  he  was 
guilty  of  blasphemy.  After  dawn  a  ratification  meet- 
ing was  held,  but  no  ratification  can  ever  make  a 
wrong  right. 

Somewhere  in  the  midst  of  the  Jewish  trial  the 
denials  of  Jesus  by  Peter  took  place.  It  is  a  sor- 
rowful story  and  humiliating  in  the  extreme.  Peter 
had  been  specially  honored  and  warned  by  Jesus, 
and  had  been  loudest  in  his  protestations  of  fidelity. 
He  sought  to  hide  in  the  crowd  of  servants  by  the  fire 


158  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

in  the  open  court,  but  the  fire  had  light  as  well  as  heat. 
His  exposure  then  led  him  to  go  to  the  door  by  the 
street,  but  even  here  he  was  recognized.  He  did 
conceal  himself  for  an  hour,  but  finally  a  kinsman 
of  the  high  priest's  servant,  Malchus,  whose  ear  he 
had  cut  off,  said :  il  Did  not  I  see  thee  in  the  garden 
with  Him?"  (John  18  :  26).  That  was  enough,  and 
Peter  lost  all  control  of  himself,  swore,  and  cursed 
like  an  adept  in  the  business  to  prove  his  ignorance 
of  Jesus.  He  caught  the  eye  of  Jesus  through  the 
open  door,  and  the  look  broke  his  heart.  He  went 
out  and  wept  bitterly,  and  appeared  no  more  until 
after  the  resurrection.  The  Gospels  vary  in  many 
details,  but  somehow  thus  these  things  seem  to  have 
occurred. 

Before  Pilate  the  accusers  come  with  quite 
different  charges.  They  now  make  political,  not 
religious  accusations.  The  first  charge  of  pervert- 
ing the  nation  was  mere  fiction.  The  second  one  of 
forbidding  to  give  tribute  to  Caesar  was  a  down- 
right falsehood,  the  very  thing  that  they  had  tried 
to  get  Jesus  to  say.  The  third  charge  of  claiming  to 
be  a  king  was  true,  but  not  a  king  in  the  sense  that 
Caesar  was,  as  they  well  knew.  In  fact  the  chief 
complaint  the  Jews  had  against  Christ's  claiming 
to  be  the  Messiah  was  just  this,  that  he  would  not 
be   a   temporal   king.     The  triumphal  entry   gave 


THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM  159 

enough  color  to  the  charge  for  them  to  use  it.  When 
Pilate  learns  that  he  is  king  of  truth,  he  sees  that  this 
does  not  at  all  infringe  on  the  province  of  Caesar. 
He  even  endeavors  to  persuade  the  Jews  to  be  will- 
ing for  Jesus  to  be  set  free,  announcing  his  own  de- 
cision that  he  is  innocent.  Surely  this  is  a  strange 
attitude  for  a  judge  to  assume.  Pilate  catches  at 
the  mention  of  Galilee  to  send  him  to  Herod  Antipas, 
who  quickly  sends  him  back.  He  was  nothing  but 
a  puzzle  to  him.  He  seeks  to  win  favor  for  Jesus 
by  putting  him  against  Barabbas  in  the  choice  of 
the  people  as  a  released  prisoner.  But  the  chief 
priests  stir  up  the  people  to  ask  for  Barabbas.  Pilate 
tries  to  make  a  joke  out  of  the  thing  and  brings  out 
Christ  with  a  crown  of  thorns  on  his  head.  In  dis- 
gust he  surrenders,  repeating  the  innocence  of 
Jesus,  not  his  guilt.  In  superstitious  dread  he  once 
more  recoils  from  the  deed  and  the  people  shout 
Caesar  at  him.  They  will  tell  Caesar  that  Pilate  par- 
doned a  man  who  claimed  to  be  a  rival  king.  It 
was  their  strong  appeal,  and  Pilate  withered  before 
it.  Vainly  did  he  remind  the  Jews  that  they  had 
done  it,  not  he.  He  could  wash  his  hands,  but  not 
his  soul.  In  truth,  Sanhedrin,  mob,  Pilate,  Judas, 
all  had  their  share  in  the  crime  of  the  ages.  There 
was  guilt  enough  for  all.  The  cry  of  the  people  to 
crucify  Jesus  was  a  nightmare  to  Pilate  and  is  a  stain 


160  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

upon  the  Sanhedrin,  Sadducees,  Pharisees,  all,  that 
has  never  been  erased. 

7.  Jesus  Dies  a  Shameful  Death. — It  is  a  dreadful 
story,  a  harrowing  narrative,  the  tragedy  of  the  uni- 
verse. Jesus  came  to  redeem  Israel  and  Israel 
crucified  him.  He  came  to  his  own,  and  his  own  re- 
ceived him  not,  preferred  a  highway  robber  to  him, 
took  his  blood  on  their  heads  with  spiteful  glee. 

Jesus  began  the  journey  to  the  cross,  carrying  his 
own  cross,  but  Simon  of  Cyrene  was  shortly  im- 
pressed to  carry  it  after  him,  probably  because  of  the 
fatigue  of  Christ,  exhausted  by  the  fearful  night. 
The  women  of  Jerusalem  who  bewailed  his  fate 
little  knew  what  would  befall  their  fair  city  because 
of  this  deed.  Jesus  reminds  them  of  the  fate  of  the 
dry  tree  when  once  the  flames  light  it  up.  In  a  sense 
Christ  took  the  place  literally  of  Barabbas,  who 
would  have  been  crucified  between  these  two  rob- 
bers as  the  ringleader  of  them.  Upon  the  hill 
shaped  like  a  skull,  overlooking  the  city,  they  nailed 
Jesus  to  the  cross.  He  would  not  take  the  wine 
mingled  with  gall  or  myrrh,  which  some  sympathetic 
person  offered  him  to  relieve  his  sufferings.  He 
would  go  into  the  shadow  with  unclouded  brain.  He 
would  taste  the  whole  cup. 

The  first  three  hours  on  the  cross,  from  9  A.  m. 
to  12  noon,  were  hours  of  torture  and  scorn.     But 


THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM  161 

Jesus  showed  the  sublimity  of  his  spirit  by  praying 
for  forgiveness  for  his  murderers,  who  did  not  know 
in  their  blind  rage  what  they  were  doing.  He 
practised  now  what  he  had  preached.  But  while 
he  prayed,  the  soldiers  gambled  for  his  robe  at  the 
foot  of  the  cross.  Pilate  had  a  spasm  of  stubbornness 
after  his  weak  surrender  on  the  main  point.  He 
stoutly  refused  to  alter  the  accusation  written  on  the 
cross.  It  was  indeed  the  charge  on  which  Jesus  had 
been  sentenced  by  him,  but  it  stung  the  Sanhe- 
drim He  would  show  them  that  he  could  not  be 
run  over  all  the  time.  The  heart  of  Jesus  went  out 
to  his  mother  who  stood  by  the  cross.  The  sword 
had  indeed  pierced  her  soul  now.  The  brothers  and 
sisters  of  Jesus  did  not  believe  in  him  yet  and  so 
John,  the  beloved  disciple,  is  the  only  one  who  can 
console  Mary  in  this  unutterable  hour.  He  led 
her  away  from  the  dreadful  scene  to  his  home  in 
Jerusalem. 

One  of  the  bitterest  drops  in  the  cup  was  the  mock- 
ery of  the  crowds  as  they  swept  by  in  lofty  scorn. 
Jesus  was  now  a  fallen  idol  ■>  and  they  gleefully  hurled 
into  his  teeth  his  great  claims  as  Saviour,  Son  of  God, 
the  Christ,  King  of  Israel,  his  power  to  build  the 
temple  in  three  days.  Why  not  step  down  from 
the  cross  that  we  may  see  and  believe?  That  will 
convert  us  all!    So  the  crowds,  the  members  of  the 


162  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

Sanhedrin,  who  lost  control  of  themselves  in  their 
hour  of  triumph,  so  the  soldiers  with  loud  rudeness, 
so  even  the  robbers  on  the  cross  by  his  side.  Even 
the  robbers  looked  down  on  this  scapegoat  between 
them,  till  one  of  them  came  to  his  senses  and  turned 
in  rebuke  to  the  other.  The  revulsion  was  so  great 
in  him  that  he  swung  over  to  faith  in  Jesus.  That 
was  trust,  indeed,  to  believe  that  Jesus  had  a  king- 
dom in  such  an  hour  as  this.  He  trusted  that  a 
better  day  would  come  for  Christ,  and  Jesus  honored 
his  faith  then  and  there,  and  opened  the  portals  of 
Paradise.  Even  on  the  cross  Jesus  saved  a  soul, 
aye,  on  the  cross  he  saved  all  who  are  saved. 

At  noon  came  the  black  darkness,  as  if  nature 
could  not  longer  behold  the  scene.  The  veil  of 
night  is  drawn  over  these  three  slow  hours  when 
silence  reigned.  The  mocking  ceased  and  a  strange 
awe  fell  upon  all.  It  was  not  an  eclipse  of  the  sun, 
for  it  was  the  time  of  the  full  moon.  The  stillness 
was  at  last  broken  by  a  cry  of  desolation  from  Jesus. 
He  felt  that  somehow  in  all  the  dreariness  of  these 
hours  the  Father  had  withdrawn  his  presence.  He 
was  made  to  be  sin,  who  knew  no  sin,  and  he  was 
left  to  feel  the  sting  of  death  for  sin.  We  may  not 
penetrate  the  mystery  further,  but  someone  has  well 
said  that  the  answer  to  this  cry  was  John  3  :  16.  It 
was  God's  love  for  the  world  that  had  made  possible 


THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM  163 

this  hour  of  unutterable  gloom.  Jesus  retained  his 
consciousness  of  what  he  was  doing.  He  took  a  sip 
of  vinegar  and  cried,  "It  is  finished"  (John  19  :  30). 
He  saw  victory  where  the  devil  and  the  Sanhedrin  saw 
only  defeat.  He  died  with  a  cry  of  resignation  on 
his  lips,  and  gave  up  his  spirit  to  the  Father. 

And  Jesus  was  dead.  His  head  was  bowed  and 
the  light  was  gone  out  of  his  eye.  The  great  artists 
of  all  ages  have  sought  to  put  on  canvas  this  sublime 
and  awful  tragedy.  The  temple  had  the  veil  rent 
from  top  to  bottom  by  the  earthquake  which  came 
when  Jesus  died.  The  graves  of  many  saints  were 
opened,  who  themselves  came  forth  after  his  resur- 
rection, so  Matthew  records  (Matt.  27  :  53).  The 
Roman  centurion  in  charge  of  the  crucifixion  was 
greatly  impressed  by  the  darkness,  the  earthquake, 
and  the  bearing  of  Jesus.  He  realized  that  a  dread- 
ful mistake  had  been  made  and  a  good  man  put  to 
death.  The  people  were  smitten  with  dread  and 
fled  to  the  city.  The  faithful  women  stood  alone 
and  watched  it  all. 

When  the  soldiers  came  to  finish  the  work  that  the 
bodies  might  not  remain  over  the  Sabbath,  they 
found  Jesus  already  dead.  John  had  come  back  to 
the  cross  and  saw  a  soldier  pierce  the  side  of  Jesus 
when  blood  and  water  came,  proving  thus  two  things: 
One  that  he  was  a  real  man,  and  no  mere  phantom 


164  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

because  of  the  blood,  the  other  that  he  had  died  rather 
suddenly  because  some  blood  still  remained  in  him, 
probably  from  a  broken  heart,  according  to  the  sug- 
gestion of  Stroud.  The  blood,  so  Dr.  Stroud  argues, 
would  not  otherwise  be  found  in  the  body  after 
death.  But  John,  whatever  the  explanation,  insists 
that  his  witness  to  the  fact  is  true  (19  :  35).  The 
courage  of  Joseph  and  Nicodemus  at  this  dark  hour 
is  not  strange  after  all,  just  as  timid  women  will 
often  be  bold  as  lions  in  a  great  crisis.  They 
took  this  stand  for  Jesus  after  his  star  had  sunk 
out  of  sight.  Let  it  be  put  to  the  credit  of  those  two 
men  of  high  position  that,  though  they  waited  long, 
they  did  take  their  stand  openly  for  Christ  when  it 
cost  most  to  do  so,  when  in  fact  many  of  the  leading 
disciples  were  in  hiding.  But  the  women  were 
faithful.  They  watched  the  place,  the  new  tomb 
of  Joseph  in  the  garden,  where  Jesus  was  laid, 
watched  till  the  Sabbath  drew  on  (dawned),  and  then 
rested  with  heavy  hearts  that  night.  It  was  a  restless 
Sabbath  that  the  rulers  spent,  for,  though  Jesus  was 
dead,  he  had  spoken  of  rising  from  the  dead.  They 
did  not  believe  any  such  nonsense  themselves,  but 
the  case  of  Lazarus  made  them  uneasy.  They 
feared  Jesus,  though  dead,  as  Herod  Antipas  did 
John  the  Baptist.  They  gave  it  out  to  Pilate 
that  they  were  afraid  of  the  disciples  of  Jesus.     At 


THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM  165 

any  rate,  they  had  their  way  and  a  guard  was  placed 
by  the  sepulchre  sealed  with  the  Roman  seal.  Then 
the  Sanhedrin  could  go  to  prayers  and  thank  God 
that  "that  deceiver"  was  out  of  the  way.  No  more 
would  he  violate  their  rules  and  teach  heresy  to  the 
people.  No  more  could  he  ridicule  them  to  the  popu- 
lace. Rabbinism  and  sacerdotalism  were  still  tri- 
umphant. They  had  saved  the  Kingdom  of  God 
from  this  upstart!  They  could  stroke  themselves 
with  pious  satisfaction  this  Sabbath  day.  Did  he 
brand  them  "hypocrites"?  He  will  never  do  it 
again,  thank  heaven.  Yet,  they  could  still  hear 
those  words  ring  out  in  the  corridors  of  the  temple 
as  the  people  cheered  Jesus.  Was  he  really  dead,  or 
was  it  all  a  fancy  that  he  was  saying  those  words 
again?  Perhaps  their  nerves  were  just  a  bit  over- 
strained.    That  was  all. 

8.  Jesus  in  the  Tomb. — The  Sabbath  seemed  an 
eternity.  The  excitement  had  died  down.  The 
Sanhedrin  were  grim  masters  of  the  situation. 
Pilate's  flickering  conscience  worried  him  at  times, 
and  perhaps  his  wife  still  had  dreams.  The  Roman 
soldiers  gossiped  about  the  strange  prisoner  who  had 
been  crucified.  The  people  of  the  city  had  a  new  re- 
spect for  the  power  of  the  Sanhedrin  who  after  all 
had  carried  out  their  threat  against  the  Prophet  of 
Nazareth.     The    Galilean    multitudes   which    had 


166  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

joined  so  enthusiastically  in  the  triumphal  entry  ac- 
cepted the  matter  philosophically.  Many  of  them 
said,  "I  told  you  so."  They  always  knew  that  some 
bad  end  was  in  store  for  this  reckless  teacher  who 
did  not  hesitate  to  oppose  the  ecclesiastics  of  Jeru- 
salem. They  were  the  scholars  and  the  custodians 
of  orthodoxy.  All  that  other  people  had  to  do  was 
to  believe  what  was  doled  out  to  them  by  the  rabbis. 
Others  were  sorry  and  disappointed,  but  silent. 
What  could  they  say  now  ? 

Jesus  was  dead.  It  beat  into  the  soul  of  Mary, 
his  mother,  like  the  pouring  rain.  What  had  the 
angel  Gabriel  said?  And  now  this!  It  was  too 
much  for  her  mother's  heart  to  understand.  He 
was  a  prophet;  he  did  work  miracles;  he  did  claim 
to  be  the  Messiah,  the  Son  of  God.  She  would  be- 
lieve him  against  all  the  world.  Besides  John  the 
Baptist  said  that  he  was  the  Messiah.  Still  he  is 
dead.  The  other  women  had  too  much  grief  of 
their  own  to  comfort  her.     And  what  could  they  say  ? 

The  disciples  were  scattered  like  sheep  without  a 
shepherd.  Judas  the  traitor  had  committed  suicide. 
Peter  the  denier  was  in  tears  in  secret.  John  was 
covering  up  his  own  woe  in  fulfilling  Jesus'  dying 
bequest  to  his  mother.  The  other  disciples  were  not 
seen  after  the  arrest  in  the  garden.  Ah,  but  they 
knew  what  had  happened,  how  they  had  deserted 


THE  ANSWER  OF  JERUSALEM  167 

him  in  this  hour  of  need.  John  alone  had  been  per- 
fectly true  and  brave  in  it  all,  John  and  the  women. 
The  hopes  of  the  disciples  lay  buried  in  Joseph's 
tomb.  No  more  petty  disputes  over  the  chief  places 
in  the  Kingdom.  To  their  minds  the  Kingdom  was 
dead  as  well  as  the  King.  It  was  all  over  with 
Christianity,  for  the  kingdom  of  the  world  had  tri- 
umphed. The  hope  of  the  world  was  buried  in  that 
tomb. 

The  enemies  of  Jesus  have  manifestly  triumphed. 
It  is  Satan's  triumph  and  he  knew  it.  The  Sanhe- 
drin  had  been  but  tools  in  his  hands,  though  they 
piously  imagined  that  they  were  serving  God  by 
what  they  had  done. 

There  was  joy  in  hell  and  Jerusalem  this  Sab- 
bath. Christ  had  chosen  battle  rather  than  com- 
promise and  this  is  Satan's  answer.  Will  Jesus  re- 
main in  that  tomb?  Did  he  remain  in  that  tomb? 
The  light  of  the  world  has  gone  out.  Will  that  Sun  of 
Righteousness  rise  again  with  healing  in  his  wings  ? 
On  the  answer  hinges  the  future  of  Christianity  and 
the  future  of  the  world.  During  that  Sabbath  no 
one  expected  it.  All  had  lost  hope  and  forgotten 
all  that  Christ  had  said  on  the  subject.  The  the- 
ology of  the  disciples  went  down  with  a  crash  be- 
fore the  great  fact  of  his  death.  That  was  the  out- 
standing fact  that  obscured  their  minds,  and  that 


168  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

they  could  not  throw  off.  The  funeral  knell  of  the 
solemn  Sabbath  hours  tolled  on  the  bleeding  hearts 
and  hopeless  minds  of  those  whom  Jesus  had  chosen 
for  this  very  day.  But  they  could  not  raise  him 
from  the  grave,  and  to  them  a  dead  Christ  was  a  dead 
Christianity.  It  is  easy  for  others  to  offer  doctrinaire 
sympathy  in  the  hour  of  death  as  the  clods  echo  our 
gloom  upon  the  grave.  But  in  this  grave  lay  buried 
the  best  flower  of  the  race,  the  hope  of  those  who  had 
trusted  all  to  him.  Put  yourself  by  that  tomb  and 
imagine  what  you  could  have  said.  It  is  vain  to 
recall  the  promises  of  a  dead  Christ. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  FINAL  TRIUMPH  OF  JESUS 
"The  Lord  is  risen  indeed "  (Luke  24  :  34). 

It  was  blackness  of  despair  for  the  disciples.  The 
night  was  long  and  there  were  no  stars.  True,  Jesus 
had  said  that  he  would  rise  on  the  third  day,  but  no 
one  thought  of  that  now  but  his  enemies,  nor  did 
they  believe  it.  The  cruel,  blighting,  staggering 
fact  of  the  death  of  the  Master  stared  them  in  the 
face  at  every  turn.  He  had  indeed  raised  Lazarus 
from  the  dead  after  being  in  the  tomb  for  four  days, 
but  now  the  grave  held  Jesus  himself  fast.  With  him 
they  had  buried  all  their  hopes.  It  was  not  a  mo- 
mentary eclipse  of  faith  that  had  come  upon  them, 
but  settled  night.  It  is  important  to  realize  to  the 
full  this  situation  so  that  one  can  see  clearly  that 
any  light  on  the  matter  had  to  come  from  someone 
else  than  the  disciples  themselves.  No  conspiracy 
on  the  part  of  these  dejected  disciples  to  revive 
Christianity  with  the  announcement  that  Jesus  was 
alive,  though  he  was  not,  is  conceivable.  If  Chris- 
tianity was  born  again  with  the  belief  in  the  Risen 
Saviour,  one  must  understand  how  difficult  it  was 
169 


170  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

for  the  disciples  to  come  to  this  belief.  If  it  be  said 
that  the  women  imagined  that  they  had  seen  angels 
and  Jesus,  and  so  restored  the  hopes  of  the  disciples, 
it  is  to  be  observed  that  the  disciples  did  not  believe 
the  women.  If  it  be  said  that  the  narratives  are 
conflicting,  one  must  remember  that  this  shows  inde- 
pendence in  the  testimony.  If  one  says  that  this  is 
the  after-reflection  and  theological  interpretation  of 
the  disciples,  one  must  recall  the  fact  that  the  nar- 
ratives tell  unhesitatingly  their  own  blunders,  short- 
sightedness, lack  of  faith,  difficulty  of  belief  in  the 
resurrection  of  Jesus.  In  simple  truth,  no  theory 
has  yet  been  advanced  that  harmonizes  with  the  fact 
of  the  revival  of  a  dead  Christianity  save  the  fact  of 
the  resurrection  of  Christ.  The  disciples  saw  Jesus. 
To  say  that  they  saw  his  spirit,  not  his  body,  does 
not  make  it  easier  of  belief.  It  is  a  miracle  to  see  a 
disembodied  spirit.  Let  us  linger  over  the  frag- 
mentary narratives  of  the  events  of  those  wonderful 
forty  days.  The  hopes  of  the  human  race  centre  in 
what  took  place  at  this  time.  Let  us  observe  the 
steps  toward  the  light. 

1.  The  Fact  of  the  Empty  Tomb. — This  was  the 
discovery  of  the  women  and  admitted  by  all.  It  is 
the  first  cardinal  fact  in  the  new  situation.  The 
enemies  of  Christ  had  overreached  themselves  in 
having  the  Roman  seal  on  the  tomb  and  the  Roman 


THE  FINAL  TRIUMPH  OF  JESUS  171 

guard  to  watch  it.  That  guard  guaranteed  that  no 
man  could  steal  the  body  of  Jesus.  When  the 
affrighted  soldiers  fled  to  the  Sanhedrin,  not  to  Pilate, 
they  told  the  truth.  They  said  that  Jesus  came  out 
of  the  tomb.  Did  the  Sanhedrin  believe  in  Jesus? 
Not  much.  Christ  had  said  that  they  would  not 
believe  though  one  rose  from  the  dead.  The  San- 
hedrin had  killed  Jesus,  and  now  undertook  to  kill 
the  fact  of  his  resurrection.  A  fact  is  the  hardest 
thing  in  the  world  to  destroy  and  has  perpetual 
power  of  rejuvenation.  It  is  far  easier  to  kill  a  man 
than  a  fact.  But  Jesus  did  not  appear  to  the  San- 
hedrin and  they  ceased  to  worry,  for  the  soldiers 
were  compelled  for  their  own  safety  to  say  what  they 
were  told  to  say.  One  may  remark  in  passing  that, 
if  the  soldiers  were  really  asleep,  they  knew  nothing 
about  what  had  happened.  The  Sanhedrin  took 
care  of  them  with  Pilate.  But  to  return  to  the 
women.  Late  on  the  Sabbath  afternoon  the  group 
of  faithful  women  gave  themselves  the  sad  privilege 
of  viewing  the  sepulchre  again.  For  some  reason 
they  did  not  observe  the  Roman  guard,  perhaps  not 
going  close  enough.  After  sundown  they  bought 
spices  with  which  to  anoint  the  body  of  Jesus,  and 
then  rested  till  morning.  With  the  dawn  they  started, 
doubtless,  from  Bethany,  and  before  they  reached  the 
knoll  north  of  Jerusalem,  the  sun  was  risen.     They 


172  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

had  made  no  plan  for  rolling  away  the  stone,  and  all 
of  a  sudden  they  are  troubled  over  that.  But,  lo, 
the  stone  is  already  rolled  away!  What  could  it 
mean?  Had  his  body  been  stolen  by  his  enemies? 
Their  ignorance  of  the  guard  would  make  such  a  sug- 
gestion natural  to  them.  They  entered  timidly 
the  open  tomb  and  behold  two  men.  At  a  glance 
they  see  that  Jesus  is  not  there.  This  is  the  first 
indisputable  fact  that  stands  out  and  confronts  us. 
The  empty  tomb  calls  for  explanation. 

2.  The  Story  of  the  Angels. — The  two  men  turn 
out  to  be  two  angels  and  they  have  an  interpretation 
of  the  situation.  They  offer  an  explanation  of  the 
empty  tomb.  The  strength  of  this  evidence  is 
weakened  for  some  minds  by  the  fact  that  angels  are 
brought  into  the  narratives.  But  if  men  can  rise 
from  the  dead,  it  may  be  possible  for  angels  to  appear 
also.  Still,  it  is  indirect,  for  the  women  have  only 
heard  the  angels  say  that  Jesus  is  risen.  "Why 
seek  ye  the  living  among  the  dead  ?  He  is  not  here 
but  is  risen"  (Luke  24  :5f).  It  is  the  angels  who 
seek  to  remind  the  women  of  the  forgotten  promise 
of  Jesus  that  he  would  rise  on  the  third  day.  They 
now  begin  to  understand.  Strange  they  had  not 
thought  of  it  before.  The  women  are  charged  with 
a  message  to  the  apostles  and  Peter  in  particular. 
Jesus  promises  to  meet  them  in  Galilee  as  he  had 


THE  FINAL  TRIUMPH  OF  JESUS         173 

said  he  would  before  his  death  (Mark  14  :  28). 
The  women  were  naturally  agitated.  Astonishment, 
fear,  trembling,  joy,  haste  seized  them  and  they  ran 
in  silence  on  their  mission.  Was  it  all  true?  The 
women  at  least  seem  to  be  convinced  that  Jesus  was 
alive.     But  what  will  the  disciples  think  of  it? 

3.  John's  Intuition. — The  sceptics  of  the  resur- 
rection of  Jesus  were  his  own  disciples.  The  prob- 
lem of  the  Risen  Christ  was  how  to  convince  them  of 
this  fact.  It  was  impossible  to  revive  faith  and  hope 
in  them  while  they  looked  on  Jesus  as  still  dead. 
The  resurrection  of  Christianity  depended  on  the 
Risen  Christ  as  a  fact  and  as  a  force.  Mary  Mag- 
dalen quickly  caught  the  fact  that  the  tomb  was 
empty  and  hurried  on,  without  seeing  the  angels, 
to  tell  Peter  and  John.  Peter  is  with  John  now,  no 
longer  alone.  Common  grief  has  brought  Peter 
back.  They  are  both  greatly  distressed  over  the 
idea  that  the  body  of  Jesus  has  been  stolen  from  the 
grave,  as  Mary  supposed.  They  must  first  see  if  it 
be  true.  John  reached  the  tomb  first,  both  far  out- 
running Mary,  but  hesitated  about  going  in  after 
seeing  the  linen  clothes  lying  to  one  side.  Peter 
did  not  hesitate  to  go  in,  whereat  John  did  likewise. 
John  noticed  that  the  napkin  that  had  been  on  his 
head  was  not  with  the  linen  clothes,  "but  rolled  up 
in  a  place  by  itself"  (John  20  :  7).     To  this  sensitive 


174  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

spiritual  temperament  here  was  evidence  that  Jesus 
had  indeed  risen  from  the  grave.  It  was  no  grave 
robbery,  no  sign  of  a  struggle  with  the  guard  or 
haste  in  the  removal  of  the  clothes,  which  indeed 
would  probably  not  have  been  removed  at  all  in  such 
a  case.  Jesus  himself  laid  that  napkin  carefully  to 
one  side.  "He  saw  and  believed."  But  Peter  was 
more  matter  of  fact  and  still  doubted.  Peter  and 
John  had  both  forgotten  the  pledge  of  Jesus  that  he 
would  rise  on  the  third  day,  had  forgotten  indeed  the 
glory  of  the  transfiguration  mount.  But  if  he  was 
risen,  where  was  he?  No  one  had  seen  Jesus.  It 
was  still  an  unsolved  mystery.  The  soldiers  alone 
knew  what  had  taken  place  and  they  did  not  tell  the 
disciples  but  the  Sanhedrin.  The  mouths  of  the 
only  eye  witnesses  to  the  salient  facts  were  closed. 
Possibly  the  Sadducees  had  not  believed  what  the 
soldiers  had  said,  but  the  Pharisees  had  taken  it  more 
seriously.  It  was  a  grave  situation  on  the  whole. 
Were  they  to  be  baffled  after  all?  Perhaps,  how- 
ever, he  had  appeared  only  as  a  spirit  and  had  van- 
ished to  bother  them  no  more. 

4.  Jesus  and  Mary. — After  Peter  and  John  had 
left  the  empty  tomb,  Mary  arrived,  for  they  had  been 
too  swift  for  her.  Another  interesting  item  is  the 
fact  that  the  angels  did  not  appear  to  Peter  and  John, 
but  reappeared  to  Mary.     One  might  argue  that 


THE  FINAL  TRIUMPH  OF  JESUS  175 

this  proves  that  the  women  started  it  all  out  of  their 
excited  imaginations,  but  no  one  believed  the  women 
till  their  testimony  was  confirmed.  So  another 
solution  must  be  sought,  though  I  have  none  to 
offer.  Gabriel  appeared  to  Joseph  as  well  as  to 
the  mother  of  Jesus.  Mary  was  standing  with- 
out, weeping  in  inconsolable  grief.  It  was  bad 
enough  before,  but  now  it  is  far  worse.  To  have 
dishonored  his  body  was  to  go  to  the  last  extremity 
of  shame.  She  stooped  and  looked  into  the  tomb. 
The  angels  are  surprised  at  her  grief  and  she  at  their 
joy.  She  gave  the  angels  the  same  answer  of  per- 
plexity concerning  what  had  been  done  with  the 
body  of  Jesus,  and  then  turned  and  saw  one  whom 
she  took  to  be  the  gardener.  Here,  perhaps,  was  a 
ray  of  light.  Possibly  he  had  removed  the  body  of 
Jesus  to  another  part  of  the  garden.  The  very  soul 
of  Mary  went  out  in  her  reply  when  she  said:  "Sir, 
if  thou  hast  borne  him  hence,  tell  me  where  thou 
hast  laid  him,  and  I  will  take  him  away"  (John 
20  :  15).  It  was  a  pathetic  appeal.  The  answer 
was  the  first  word  that  Jesus  is  known  to  have  spoken 
to  a  human  being  since  his  resurrection  and  it  was 
simply  "  Mary."  But  it  was  the  old  accent  and  tone 
of  voice.  She  had  not  been  thinking  it  possible  that 
Jesus  was  alive  and  did  not  recognize  him.  Besides 
Christ  had  another  appearance  to  some  extent.     It 


176  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

was  not  easy  to  apprehend  him  at  first,  and  some- 
times he  held  the  disciples  back  in  a  sense  from  know- 
ing him.  But  now  there  was  no  doubt.  By  the  open 
grave  Mary  saw  Jesus.  She  could  only  say,  "Rab- 
boni.,,  She  ventured  to  lay  her  hand  tenderly  upon 
him,  but  he  restrained  her.  He  is  here  at  all  be- 
cause he  has  not  yet  ascended  to  the  Father. 

He  is  on  the  way  from  the  grave  to  glory  and 
stops  some  days  with  the  disciples.  He  calls  them 
"My  brethren"  and  identifies  himself  in  sympathy 
with  them  in  relation  to  God  the  Father.  He  sends 
a  message  to  them  that  he  is  going  to  ascend  to  the 
Father.  The  other  women  had  a  promise  from  the 
angels  that  he  would  see  them  in  Galilee.  Both 
messages  were  true  and  would  test  them.  Mary 
is  all  ablaze  with  the  wondrous  reality  and  comes 
running  to  the  disciples  with  the  tremendous  words, 
"I  have  seen  the  Lord"  (John  20  :  18).  But  no 
one  believed  her.  If  John  heard  this,  he  kept  quiet. 
Doubt  held  the  apostles  fast.  It  simply  could  not 
be  true.  It  was  some  new  delusion  that  had  seized 
Mary.     Perhaps  the  demons  had  her  again. 

5.  Jesus  and  the  Other  Women. — He  met  the 
women  on  the  way  from  the  tomb  with  the  message 
of  the  angels  before  they  had  seen  the  disciples 
though  Luke  24  : 9  may  indicate  that  they  had  de- 
livered the  message  of  the  angels.     Jesus  repeats  the 


THE  FINAL  TRIUMPH  OF  JESUS  177 

message  of  the  angels  to  them  that  he  would  meet 
them  in  Galilee.  And  yet  he  was  soon  to  see  them 
in  Jerusalem.  Was  it  that  he  was  gradually  getting 
them  ready  for  seeing  him?  Before  the  great  re- 
union in  Galilee  they  would  need  much  strengthen- 
ing. His  appearances  to  them  in  Jerusalem  were 
all  in  the  nature  of  a  surprise.  The  Synoptics  all 
give  the  Galilee  appointment  and  some  of  the  Jeru- 
salem appearances  on  this  first  day  also.  No  more 
did  the  apostles  believe  the  testimony  of  the  group 
of  women.     It  was  to  them  as  idle  talk  (Luke  24  : 1 1 ). 

6.  Unexpected  Light  on  the  Problem. — Cleopas 
and  a  friend  lived  at  Emmaus,  some  eight  miles 
west  of  Jerusalem.  They  had  come  into  town  this 
first  day  of  the  week  to  see  if  there  were  any  develop- 
ments among  the  disciples  on  the  situation.  It  was 
late  afternoon  and  they  were  plodding  their  way 
home  with  heavy  hearts.  It  was  still  all  dark  in 
Jerusalem.  They  were  talking  it  all  over  as  they 
went  along.  It  was  a  time  for  reviewing  the  whole 
career  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  Each  sought  to  ex- 
plain the  work  of  this  marvellous  man  and  asked 
the  other  questions  on  difficult  points.  Why  was 
there  so  much  promise  if  it  was  all  to  end  thus  ? 

A  stranger  joined  them  and  listened  to  their  talk. 
Finally  he  asked  what  it  was  all  about.  "They 
stood  still,  looking  sad"   (Luke  24:17).    Where 


178  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

had  he  been  these  days  not  to  have  heard  of  Jesus 
of  Nazareth  ?  Had  he  lived  all  alone  in  Jerusalem  ? 
There  was  but  one  theme  on  people's  lips  in  these 
days  and  that  was  Jesus.  They  briefly  recounted  the 
story  of  the  Nazarene,  his  works,  his  character,  and 
his  end.  They  added  what  had  been  their  own 
hope  about  him,  a  hope  now  buried  in  the  tomb. 
"  We  were  hoping  that  it  was  he  that  should  redeem 
Israel."  The  nation's  hope  had  risen  fast  around 
him.  It  did  look  once  as  though  he  were  the  long- 
looked-for  Messiah.  But  now  it  is  all  over,  for  he 
has  been  dead  three  days.  It  is  true  that  some  of 
the  women  had  a  story  that  the  tomb  was  empty, 
which  turned  out  to  be  so,  but  nobody  believed  what 
they  said  about  a  vision  of  angels  who  alleged  that 
Jesus  was  alive.  When  they  left  town,  no  one  had 
seen  Jesus  himself. 

The  stranger  now  began  to  talk.  He  took  up  the 
Old  Testament  and  explained  how  the  career  of 
Jesus,  as  they  had  outlined  it,  tallied  with  the  descrip- 
tion of  the  Messiah  in  the  Scriptures.  He  even 
argued  that  it  was  necessary  for  the  Messiah  to 
suffer.  It  was  a  new  and  very  interesting  interpre- 
tation to  them  and  they  would  consider  it.  It  was 
wonderful,  for  their  hearts  burned  as  he  spoke. 
They  had  never  heard  it  put  that  way  before.  But 
they  are  at  home  and  must  stop.    The  stranger  hesi- 


THE  FINAL  TRIUMPH  OF  JESUS  179 

tated  and  started  to  go  on.  Only  upon  their  urgent 
invitation  did  he  stop  for  the  evening  meal.  Across 
the  table  they  now  sat  and  he  took  the  bread  and  said 
grace.  It  was  the  old  voice  and  the  old  charm. 
They  looked  at  each  other  and  he  was  gone!  It 
was  Jesus,  and  they  had  seen  him.  The  women 
were  right  after  all.  Christ  had  risen  from  the  dead 
and  was  alive.  They  must  tell  the  brethren  in  Jeru- 
salem and  bring  joy  to  their  hearts. 

7.  A  Conference  on  the  Situation. — It  was  in  the 
same  upper  room  where  they  had  assembled  on  that 
fateful  night  when  Jesus  had  foretold  all  that  had 
come  to  pass.  Probably  Simon  Peter  was  the  cause 
of  the  meeting.  The  women  had  brought  a  special 
message  from  the  angels  for  him  from  the  Master. 
But  to  crown  it  all  Jesus  himself  had  appeared  to 
Simon  Peter.  The  news  created  the  utmost  excite- 
ment among  the  apostles.  He  was  the  leader  and 
surely  he  would  not  be  deceived,  even  if  the  women 
had  been.  It  was  a  crisis  of  Christianity,  the  crisis 
of  all  crises.  If  Jesus  was  indeed  risen  from  the 
dead,  then  all  was  not  lost:  in  truth,  all  was  won. 
There  would  still  be  a  future,  a  glorious  future, 
for  Christianity.  It  was  important  that  the  apostles 
do  not  disband.  They  must  meet  at  once  with  those 
disciples  that  could  be  reached  and  confer  on  the 
next  step.     Probably  Mary  and  other  women  were 


180  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

here  also,  but  Thomas  was  absent.  Possibly  in 
the  hurry  he  could  not  be  found.  There  would  cer- 
tainly be  an  interesting  time  with  all  these  personal 
witnesses  to  the  fact  that  Jesus  was  alive.  Perhaps 
Mary,  the  other  women,  Peter,  all  told  how  he  looked 
and  what  he  said.  What  had  Jesus  said  to  Peter? 
It  was  the  first  time  that  Peter  had  seen  the  Master 
since  the  denials.  The  rest  would  eagerly  weigh 
all  that  was  said.  Was  it  valid  evidence?  Was  it 
conclusive?  Could  they  not  be  mistaken  after  all? 
In  the  midst  of  the  meeting  the  two  disciples  from 
Emmaus  come  with  their  wonderful  story.  Before 
they  can  tell  it,  they  are  greeted  with  the  glad  an- 
nouncement: "The  Lord  is  risen  indeed,  and  hath 
appeared  to  Simon"  (Luke  24  :  32).  This  last  was 
the  salient  point  to  the  disciples.  Then  the  two  went 
on  with  their  remarkable  confirmation.  It  did  in- 
deed look  as  if  it  were  true,  wonderful  though  it  was. 
The  doors  had  been  shut  for  fear  of  the  Jews,  for 
they  must  take  no  chances. 

As  they  talked  of  Jesus  all  at  once  he  stood  in 
the  midst  of  them.  He  had  risen  from  the  dead! 
But  were  they  now  convinced  ?  A  strange  reaction 
set  in,  for  they  were  now  terrified  and  supposed  that 
they  saw  a  spirit  or  ghost,  just  what  some  modern 
critics  now  allege.  This  entire  appearance  as  re- 
corded by  Luke  and  John  opposes  the  idea  that  it 


THE  FINAL  TRIUMPH  OF  JESUS         181 

was  only  the  spirit  of  Jesus  that  was  seen  by  the 
disciples.  He  showed  them  his  hands  and  his  side 
and  expressly  alleged  that  he  was  not  mere  spirit, 
hut  even  had  "flesh  and  bones"  (Luke  24  :39). 

This  passage  adds  to  the  difficulty,  one  must  ad- 
mit, for  flesh  and  blood  will  not  enter  heaven.  The 
resurrection  body  is  a  spiritual  body.  But  one 
must  remember  that  the  case  of  Jesus  is  entirely 
exceptional.  He  spent  forty  days  on  earth  between 
the  resurrection  and  the  ascension.  His  body  was 
not  as  it  had  been  nor  as  it  would  be.  He  could 
go  through  closed  doors  and  yet  eat  broiled  fish. 
We  must  leave  that  mystery  unsolved,  as  we  have 
to  do  with  all  the  deeper  mysteries  of  God  and  nature. 
But  after  all  this  is  no  more  difficult  than  the  fact  of 
resurrection,  and  we  can  see  how  this  transition  state 
could  be  a  mighty  help  to  the  faith  of  the  disciples. 
Their  doubt  was  so  great  on  this  occasion  that 
Jesus  upbraided  their  unbelief.  As  one  has  quaintly 
said,  they  doubted  that  we  may  believe.  At  last 
our  Lord  had  convinced  his  own  disciples  that  he 
was  no  longer  dead,  but  alive.  It  is  well  for  us  that 
the  proof  was  conclusive,  for  the  resurrection  of  Jesus 
is  the  foundation  of  all  our  hopes  and  struggles. 
Christ  has  convinced  them,  but  this  is  only  the  begin- 
ning. They  have  a  mission  to  the  world  to  go  and 
win  it.     As  the  Father  had  sent  him,  so  he  now 


182  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

sends  them  (John  20  :  21).  They  are  to  announce 
to  men  the  terms  of  forgiveness.  Their  task  is  now 
to  convince  others.  Can  they  prove  to  others  that 
Jesus  is  alive,  that  Christianity  is  alive  also  and 
destined  to  conquer  the  world  ?  They  have  at  least 
one  qualification;  they  believe  it  themselves.  They 
have  hope  and  faith,  but  they  lack  experience  and 
power. 

8.  The  Case  of  Thomas.  —  They  soon  meet 
Thomas,  who  was  absent  on  the  Sunday  night  when 
Jesus  appeared  to  the  company  in  the  upper  room. 
They  try  to  convince  him  by  saying:  "We  have 
seen  the  Lord"  (John  20:25),  and  fail  utterly  to 
move  his  unbelief.  He  was  still  as  sceptical  as  they 
had  been  before  Peter's  experience  and  before  they 
had  seen  the  prints  of  the  nails  in  Christ's  hands 
and  feet.  I  will  not  believe,  Thomas  bluntly  said,  till 
I  see  what  you  claim  to  have  seen.  After  all  Thomas 
was  not  much  more  sceptical  than  the  rest  had  been 
even  after  they  had  Jesus  right  before  their  eyes. 
It  is  true  that  he  had  their  testimony  added  to  all 
the  rest.  There  is  an  honest  doubt  which  is  the  foe 
of  all  credulity.  Christianity  is  the  foe  of  idle  super- 
stition as  well  as  of  blatant  infidelity.  Christianity 
wishes  its  adherents  to  look  the  facts  in  the  face. 
Still  the  disciples  had  all  carried  their  doubt  too  far 
and  were  openly  rebuked  by  Jesus  for  it.     Thomas 


THE  FINAL  TRIUMPH  OF  JESUS  183 

is  not  a  comfort  to  the  man  who  prides  himself  on 
his  scepticism.  Jesus  was  good  to  Thomas.  On 
the  next  Sunday  the  disciples  meet  again  in  the  same 
upper  room  where  Jesus  had  appeared  to  them  just 
a  week  before.  They  have  not  seen  him  during  the 
week,  for  Christ  does  not  remain  with  them  bodily 
now  though  he  is  with  them  in  spirit.  Will  he  come 
to-night  ?  Who  can  tell  ?  They  have  not  yet  gone 
to  Galilee  because  the  time  had  not  arrived  for  that. 
They  have  not  wavered  in  their  conviction  that  Jesus 
is  alive.  They  have  not  formulated  any  plans  for 
the  future  of  Christianity,  but  are  waiting  for  further 
developments.  The  doors  are  closed  again,  for  the 
rulers  must  be  kept  in  ignorance  of  the  present 
situation.     Thomas  is  there  to-night. 

Suddenly  Jesus  stood  before  them  again  and 
speaks  to  Thomas.  He  had  accepted  the  challenge 
of  doubt  and  showed  his  hands  and  his  side.  It 
was  enough  and  Thomas  could  only  say  to  him, 
"My  Lord  and  My  God"  (John  20:28).  If 
Thomas  had  doubted  longer,  his  faith  now  grew 
faster  than  that  of  the  rest.  He  hails  Jesus  as  Lord 
and  God  without  any  reservation.  Christ  allowed 
himself  to  be  declared  divine,  and  added  that  the 
greatest  faith  was  that  which  would  reach  this 
height  without  having  seen  him,  the  faith  of  those 
who  "have  not  seen  and  yet  have  believed."    This 


184  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

beatitude  belongs  to  all  of  us  who  are  convinced  of 
the  resurrection  and  deity  of  Jesus.  John  adds  here, 
as  if  closing  his  Gospel,  that  this  is  the  reason  why 
he  has  written,  to  bring  to  pass  just  this  state  of  faith 
in  Jesus  as  the  Messiah,  the  Son  of  God.  Surely 
his  ambition  has  been  nobly  realized  even  though 
his  Gospel  for  that  very  reason  has  been  fiercely 
assailed  through  the  ages.  But,  sooth  to  say,  John 
has  given  us  such  a  picture  of  Christ  as  would  make 
him,  if  it  is  not  genuine,  the  greatest  creative  artist 
of  all  the  ages,  a  thing  that  no  one  believes. 

9.  By  the  Sea  of  Galilee. — The  days  went  by  and 
the  disciples  turned  to  Galilee.  The  time  had  not 
yet  come  when  Jesus  would  reveal  himself  to  the 
body  of  believers  (over  five  hundred,  Paul  said)  on 
the  appointed  mountain  in  Galilee.  There  was 
nothing  to  do  but  to  wait  in  the  midst  of  the  scenes 
of  so  much  of  the  work  of  Christ.  At  every  turn 
along  the  beloved  lake  they  would  be  reminded  of 
Jesus.  They  had  left  their  all  and  cast  their  fortunes 
with  the  new  teacher  on  these  shores.  Had  it  been 
worth  while  ?  What  has  the  future  in  store  for  them 
now  ?  Truly  it  had  been  wonderful.  Most  of  them 
had  been  fishermen  and  so  one  night  Peter  took  the 
initiative  and  said  that  he  was  going  fishing.  That 
was  enough  to  call  back  the  old  days.  Six  of  them 
at  once  offered  to  go  with  him.     They  fished  all 


THE  FINAL  TRIUMPH  OF  JESUS  185 

night  and  had  fisherman's  luck  and  caught  nothing. 
They  were  used  to  that  and  were  pulling  for  the 
shore  in  the  early  dawn  when  they  saw  a  figure  in  the 
dim  light  walking  on  the  shore.  A  voice  came  to 
them  that  was  strangely  familiar,  though  the  word 
"  children  "  as  applied  to  them  in  address  was  appar- 
ently unusual,  but  John's  fine  spiritual  sense  perceived 
the  truth,  he  said:  "It  is  the  Lord"  (John  21  : 7). 
The  impulsiveness  of  Peter  responded  to  John's  in- 
sight and  he  was  soon  on  the  shore  beside  Jesus. 

The  scene  between  Jesus  and  Peter  on  the  shore 
in  the  early  morning  is  wonderful  indeed.  It  was 
after  the  breakfast  of  fish  and  bread  that  Christ 
turned  to  Simon.  One  other  morning  he  had  sat  by 
a  fire  and  this  of  itself  was  significant  to  Simon,  but 
Jesus  was  pointed  enough  to  bring  the  whole  scene 
of  the  denial  back  to  his  all  too  vivid  memory.  He 
seized  the  right  moment  to  probe  Simon's  heart  by 
three  searching  questions.  It  was  Simon  who  had 
spoken  for  the  disciples  at  Csesarea  Philippi.  It 
was  Simon  who  had  said  on  the  night  of  the  betrayal 
that,  though  all  men  forsook  Jesus,  yet  he  would  be 
faithful  even  unto  death.  Time  makes  short  work 
of  the  boaster  and  now  Simon  was  in  poor  shape  to 
say  a  word.  Jesus  was  gentle,  but  persistent  with 
Peter,  challenging  his  superior  love  and  even  his 
very  love  itself  with  the  word  chosen  by  Simon.     A 


186  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

question  came  for  each  denial  and  each  cut  to  the 
heart.  The  result  was  gratifying  indeed  and  re- 
vealed a  humility  in  Simon  not  manifest  before, 
but  which  reappears  in  I  Peter  5  : 1-11.  He  is 
now  converted  after  the  sifting  by  Satan  and  the 
prayers  of  Jesus  for  him  have  availed.  Jesus  ex- 
horts him  to  feed  the  sheep  and  he  will  later  urge  the 
elders  to  "tend  the  flock  of  God"  (I  Peter  5  : 2). 
Once  Peter  had  promised  Jesus  that  he  would  die 
a  martyr's  death,  if  need  be,  and  then  turned  and 
ran  in  disgrace.  But  now  that  he  is  humble  he  will 
have  a  martyr's  death  by  and  by.  But  Simon  is 
Simon  still  in  his  personal  characteristics,  and  his 
curiosity  leads  him  to  ask  about  John,  "And  what 
shall  this  man  do?"  (John  21  :  22).  Peter's  ques- 
tion bordered  upon  impertinence  and  was  sharply 
rebuked  by  Jesus,  though  he  did  not  mean  that  John 
actually  would  live  till  the  second  coming,  a  mistake 
that  John  takes  pains  to  correct.  James  and  John 
had  once  rashly  said  that  they  were  able  to  be  bap- 
tized with  Christ's  baptism  of  blood,  and  James  in 
fact  was  soon  to  drink  that  cup. 

10.  On  a  Mountain  in  Galilee. — The  location  of 
this  mountain  we  do  not  know  nor  the  precise  date. 
Doubtless  the  bulk  of  the  believers  are  here  as- 
sembled. There  had  been  time  enough  for  word  to 
reach  them.     It  was  a  signal  occasion,  for  here  were 


THE  FINAL  TRIUMPH  OF  JESUS  187 

assembled  the  people  who  represented  the  visible 
fruitage  of  the  ministry  of  Jesus,  something  over 
five  hundred  disciples.  The  grain  of  mustard-seed 
had  begun  to  grow  and  would  ultimately  cover  the 
earth.  This  Jesus  knew.  Some  few  still  doubted, 
having  a  hard  battle,  but  most  had  come  already 
to  a  militant  faith  in  the  Risen  Redeemer.  Jesus 
met  this  goodly  company  as  the  Leader  of  a  world- 
conquering  host.  No  statesman  ever  outlined  such 
a  magnificent  programme  as  Jesus  here  laid  down, 
the  Christian's  Charter  for  the  conquest  for  the 
world.  No  general  was  ever  more  certain  of  victory. 
The  sublime  optimism  of  Christ  is  transcendent 
when  one  recalls  that  his  disciples  had  no  money,  no 
weapons,  no  influence.  They  had,  however,  the 
supreme  message  and  the  presence  and  power  of 
Christ  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  It  is  objected  by  some 
critics  that  the  great  Commission  is  too  ecclesiastical 
to  be  genuine,  but  baptism  is  the  only  item  that  is 
open  to  such  a  charge  and  no  detailed  directions 
are  here  given  for  the  execution  of  that  command. 
All  that  we  get  elsewhere.  It  is  a  missionary  propa- 
ganda that  Jesus  here  lays  upon  the  hearts  of  the 
five  hundred  men  and  women,  primarily  upon  them 
as  members  of  the  Kingdom  of  God,  redeemed  indi- 
viduals. The  local  church  is  God's  appointed 
means  for  carrying  on  the  work  of  the  kingdom,  but 


188  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

the  responsibility  rests  ultimately  on  every  believer 
apart  from  a  church's  failure,  or  performance  of 
duty.  The  disciples  are  the  salt  of  the  earth,  the 
hope  of  the  world,  and  the  future  of  Christianity 
rested  on  their  shoulders. 

11.  In  Jerusalem  Again. — The  Apostles  now  re- 
turned to  Jerusalem,  the  scene  of  their  sore  discom- 
fiture, yes,  but  the  scene  of  Christ's  triumphant  resur- 
rection also.  Henceforth  Jerusalem,  not  Galilee, 
will  be  the  place  of  their  activity.  They  will  seek  to 
win  a  foothold  right  in  Jerusalem  itself,  for  now  they 
know  that  God  is  with  them  to  the  end.  James,  the 
brother  of  Jesus,  had  received  a  special  manifesta- 
tion and  is  now  a  devout  believer  along  with  John 
and  the  rest.  Mary,  his  mother,  has  a  new  song  in 
her  heart.  She  can  sing  a  new  Magnificat,  with 
a  clearer  faith.  She  had  indeed  seen  the  salvation 
of  the  Lord.  Already,  then,  a  nucleus  exists  in  Jeru- 
salem. Lazarus  does  not  appear  more  in  the  his- 
tory, because,  perhaps,  of  the  relentless  hatred  of  the 
rulers  toward  him  for  coming  out  of  the  tomb. 

Jesus  meets  the  disciples  again  in  Jerusalem  and 
takes  pains  to  give  them  a  last  lesson  in  the  interpre- 
tation of  the  Old  Testament,  for  he  knew  the  Old 
Testament.  He  was,  and  is,  the  great  interpreter 
of  Scripture  for  all  time.  He  found  himself  in  the 
writings  of  Moses,  the  prophets,  and  the  Psalms, 


THE  FINAL  TRIUMPH  OF  JESUS  189 

though  he  had  to  open  the  minds  of  the  disciples 
before  they  could  see  it  (Luke  24  :  45).  The  open 
mind  is  as  necessary  as  the  open  Scripture  and  more 
difficult  to  get.  The  closed  mind  is  the  chief  foe 
of  Scripture  truth.  Jesus  expects  us  to  use  our 
minds  in  the  study  of  the  Bible.  Once  more  Christ 
urged  them  on  to  the  conquest  of  the  world.  That 
is  the  main  thing.  Missions  are  the  very  life  of 
Christianity.  They  must  indeed  wait  in  Jerusalem 
for  power  from  on  high  with  which  to  win  the  world. 
The  spiritual  dynamo  is  absolutely  necessary.  They 
will  soon  receive  the  Holy  Spirit  and  then  they  must 
undertake  this  world  enterprise.  They  are  not, 
however,  to  tarry  in  Jerusalem  till  all  of  Jerusalem 
is  won.  That  is  not  true  yet!  They  are  not  indeed 
ready  for  this  world-mission,  for  they  still  look  for  a 
temporal  kingdom  (Acts  1 : 6),  an  error  that  the  Holy 
Spirit  will  remove  when  he  comes.  Indeed,  the  dis- 
ciples will  understand  Jesus  better  after  he  is  gone. 
12.-4  Last  View  on  Mt.  Olivet. — Jesus  led  the 
disciples  out  of  the  eastern  gate,  past  Gethsemane 
with  its  tragic  memories,  up  the  familiar  slope 
towards  Bethany,  beloved  Bethany.  The  view  was 
sublime  in  every  direction,  the  Jordan,  the  Dead 
Sea,  Mt.  Nebo,  Jerusalem,  the  Mediterranean. 
"They  were  looking  up"  (Acts  1 :  9)  and  Jesus  was 
giving  them  a  parting  blessing.     A  cloud  swept  by 


190  EPOCHS  IN  THE  LIFE  OF  JESUS 

and  he  was  gone.  Long  after  the  cloud  disappeared 
the  entranced  disciples  kept  gazing  into  the  heaven 
whither  Jesus  had  gone. 

13.  Till  He  Come. — Their  upward  look  was  in- 
terrupted by  the  word  of  the  two  angels  that  "this 
Jesus"  will  so  come  back  in  like  manner  (Acts  1  :  11). 
He  had  said  so  himself.  They  now  know  that  he 
has  risen  and  believe  that  he  will  come  back.  In  a 
short  time  they  will  be  under  the  tutelage  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  and  will  come  to  understand  the  spiritual 
nature  of  the  Kingdom  of  God.  And  now  they 
worshipped  Jesus  (Luke  24  :  52)  with  joy  and  praise. 
The  task  of  the  disciples  is  to  understand,  to  inter- 
pret, and  to  obey  Jesus.  The  Christian  world  is 
still  engaged  in  doing  these  things.  His  life  and 
teachings,  his  death  and  resurrection,  his  power  over 
men  to  uplift  and  to  make  god-like,  the  greatest  of 
all  themes,  still  fill  the  horizon  of  the  modern  world. 
Science  has  done  wonders,  but  science  is  barren  be- 
side the  life  of  Jesus.  He  has  stood  the  searchlight 
of  minute  historical  investigation.  Most  of  all  he 
endures  the  test  of  life.  His  pitying  eye  still  looks 
upon  us,  his  powerful  hand  still  reaches  out  to  save. 
When  he  came  before  they  crucified  him;  when  he 
comes  again  he  will  be  crowned  King  of  Kings  and 
Lord  of  Lords.  Meanwhile  let  him  rule  in  all  our 
hearts.     "Amen:  come,  Lord  Jesus." 


INDEX 


Abraham 15 

Aeons 18 

Alexander 60 

Andrew 28  f..  43  ff. 

Angels,  story  of 172 

Anna 13,26 

Annas 156  ff. 

Answer  of  Jerusalem 145 

Aramaic 9,  43 

Appreciative  group  in  Beth- 
any     145 

Ascension 189  f . 

Attack  upon  Jerusalem 120 

Augustine 4 

Babylonian  teachings 45 

Baptism  of  Jesus 16 

Barnabas 69 

Battle  renewed  in  Galilee 54 

Beatitudes 65 

Beelzebub 78 

Bethany 76  ff. 

Bethany  beyond  Jordan 27  f. 

Bethsaida 106 

Bethsaida-Julias 105 

Bethesda,  pool  of 52 

Beyond  Jordan  again 129 

Bousset 3 

Brief  visit  to  Galilee 104 

Briggs 12 

Brothers  of  Jesus 117 

Buddha 2 

Caesar 141 

Caesarea  Philippi 106 

Caiaphas 137,  156  ff . 

Call  to  Nazareth 40 

Calvin 4 

Campaign  in  Judea 126 

Capernaum 33,  43  ff. 

Case  of  Thomas 182 

Cephas 29 

Challenge  to  Jerusalem 137 

China 45 

Choice  of  the  Twelve 59 

Chorazin 106 

Cleopas 177 

Concern  for  the  Disciples ....    148 
Conference  of  the  Disciples.  .    179 

Conflict  over  the  Sabbath 151 

Connection    with    John    the 

Baptist's  work 26 

Corinthian  Gnostics 17 

Cornelius 101 

Cross 160  ff. 

Crucifixion 160  ff. 

Dalmanutha 104 

David 54 


Decapolw 86,  102 

Declaration  of  Principles.  ...     61 

Demonology 85 

Description  of  the  Twelve..  .  .60  f. 
Despair  of  John  the  Baptist..      71 

Dies  a  shameful  death 160 

Docetic  Gnosticism 11 

Ebionites 10,  26 

Egypt 43 

Elijah 15,  72  f. 

Emmaus 177 

Examination  of  the  Twelve.  .    106 

Faces  his  accusers 155 

Facing  Jerusalem 118 

Fact  of  the  empty  tomb 170 

Father's  sanction  of  the  Son.  14 

Final  Triumph  of  Jesus 169 

First  appeal  of  Jesus 26 

First  disciples 28 

First  glimpse  of  Jesus 6 

First  miracle 31 

Foretaste  of  the  struggle.  . . .  139 

Foster,  G.  B 3 

Fourth  Gospel 10 

Fresh  teaching  about  death. .  114 

Galilean  campaign 76 

Galileans  and  a  spiritual  Mes- 
siah      89 

Galilee 44  ff. 

Gethsemane 152  ff. 

Gives  up  to  his  foes 154 

Going  to  face  the  issue 134 

Gnosticism 11,  17 

Greek  language 43 

Heathen  territory 83 

Heavenly  light  on  the  death 

of  Christ Ill 

Hebrew 9 

Herod  Antipas 89 

Herods 13 

Herodians 104,  140 

Horns  of  Hattin 62 

Hosea 54 

In  Jerusalem  again 128 

Incompleteness  of  the  Gospel 
story 1 

Interview  with  a  Jewish 
scholar 37 

Interview  with  a  Samaritan 
woman 39 

Isaiah 41 

Issue  with  Jerusalem  authori- 
ties       33 

In  Jerusalem  last  time 188 


191 


192 


INDEX 


James 9,  43  ff. 

Jeremiah 107 

Jerusalem 15,  32  ff. 

Jerusalem    authorities    renew 

their  attack.. . 93 

Jerusalem    conspirators    out- 
witted at  home 121 

Jesus  and  Mary 174 

Jesus  and  the  other  women .  .    176 
Johannine     presentation     of 

Jesus 23 

John 4,  10  ff. 

John's  intuition  at  the  tomb.    173 

John  the  Baptist 15  ff. 

Jonah 105 

Jordan 15  ff. 

Joseph 9,  10 

Judas 148  ff. 

Judas,  not  Iscariot 151 

Jude 9 

Kenosis 13 

Last  visit  to  Nazareth 85 

Lazarus 140 

Levi 47  f. 

Luke 7,9ff. 

Magadan 104 

Malchus 154 

Mark 10,  40,  148  ff. 

Mary  Magdalen 76  ff. 

Mary,  mother  of  Jesus 7,  9  ff. 

Mary  of  Bethany 145  ff. 

Matthew 9  ff. 

Mesopotamia 43 

Messianic     consciousness     of 

Jesus 1 

Moral  issue  in  the  temptation,  18 

Naaman 42 

Nain 72 

Nathanael 30,31 

Nazareth 30  ff. 

New  departure 51 

New  home 44 

New  lesson 109 

New  organization 56 

New  style  of  teaching 80 

Nicodemus 156  ff. 

North  American  Review 12 


On  a  mountain  in  Galilee . 


188 


Parables 80  ff. 

Paul 14  ff. 

Peter 4  ff. 

Peter's  confession 107 

Pfleiderer 3 

Pharisees 23  ff . 

Philip 29  f. 


Phoenicia 100  ff. 

Pilate 158  ff. 

Plato 2 

Problem  of  Jesus 1 

Prophecy  of  doom 143 

Reason  for  training  of  the 
Twelve 98 

Rejection  of  a  spiritual  king- 
dom.      76 

Repels  attack 77 

Resurrection  of  Jesus 169  ff. 

Roman  people 90  ff. 

Rome 10 

Sadducees 104  ff. 

Samaria 39  ff. 

Sanhedrin 25 

Sanhedrin's  desperation 131 

Sanhedrin       receives      unex- 

Eected  help 146 
midt 103 

Sea  of  Galilee 187 

Second  tour  of  Galilee 76 

Sermon  on  the  Mount 61  ff. 

Sidon 62,  100 

Simeon 13,  26 

Simon 28  ff. 

Simon  of  Cyrene 160 

Simon  the  Pharisee 145 

Sinai 10 

Socrates 2 

Struggle  of  Jesus  with  him- 
self     152 

Syria 43 

Syriac 10 

Syrophoenician 101 

Temptation  of  Christ 18 

Terms  used  of  Jesus 24 

Third  tour  of  Galilee 86 

Thomas 151  ff. 

Thucydides 7 

Tiberius 62 

Till  he  come 190 

Tomb 165 

Training  of  the  Twelve 98 

Transfiguration Ill 

Trial 145  ff. 

Two  ways 69 

Tyre 62,  102 

Unexpected  light 177 

Victorious  debate 140 

Virgin  birth 8  ff. 

Wrede 3 

Zacharias 13.  26 

Zarepbath 42 


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